I'll Always Know It Was You
by Lavenderpaw
Summary: When Hiro becomes caught up in his new family, especially that of his new uncle, the team knows they'll have to tell Hiro the truth about his parents; But when their leader goes missing and a madman's uprising is imminent, they'll have to find him while still saving the day. No one will take their hero and friend, but will Hiro always be the one they can depend on? Sequel. Done!
1. Hiro's new uncle

**I.**

 _1983._

In the resting hours of a restless summer morning, a small figure pushed his bike out of a wide-mouthed garage. The streets were damp, the allies were dark and the sky that hung was a smoggy blue-gray as the nine-year-old boy wheeled his well-equipped bike around his home. The light from the streetlamps reflected it as a dark green as he pushed it up to the streetcar tracks below the high incline by his house.

He didn't climb on to ride, but instead raised the brim of his colbalt ballcap;

The new streetcar had stopped to let on a passenger just one block below his.

With a daring smile, the boy pulled out a ginormous remote controller that fit in both his hands. He also pulled out a big, black cord from the front of his bike, attached it to the front of his analog controller and then waited as the streetcar passed him towards it's normal ascent up the hill. The boy flipped the switches outwards, aiming for the top of the streetcar. He pushed his bike with his knees up behind the car, fitted his arms and legs it padded, velcro cuffs and flipped the switches inward. People let out a scream as the trailcar plowed up the hill at 60 miles per hour, the boy laughing as he trailed along behind it. The cord didn't break and he controlled it.

...

Once the streetcar had successfully been re-polarized so it would return to the point of hijacking, it's nine-year-old abducter biked casually up to a partially-lit university.

 _S.F.I.T._ read it's sign in a swirled, outdated design. It even glowed a faint neon.

The boy rode his bike with some difficulty around the front, never bothering to steal a glance at the actual entrance, and headed for the back of the big, brick-and-glass building. It was lit by three hanging lamps with a typical dumpster and metal drums containing staff-only-knew-what. The boy got his gear and headed for the big wall.

"Taku," Someone whispered.

Surprised, the thin boy with kempt black hair turned to his bike.

It didn't move... and it didn't say anything. Had he put the kickstand down?

With some real hesitation this time, Taku started to scale up the brick face.

" _Taku_." The voice was distinctly another boy's.

"Hasaki?" The older boy approached his bike and lifted the top where he kept all of his supplies, snacks and portable Betamax player. "What'd you think you're doing?"

"Heeyyy." Hasaki waved sheepishly.

Taku frowned at him.

"You were going away..." The shaggy-haired, wiry-built boy looked up.

"I told you, I was only going to college," he gestured upwards.

"Well... not for three more years. Mama said so."

"Get up," Taku pulled the pouting five-year-old out. "Okay," he looked into the gold-orange eyes of his little brother. "You can stay, but _only_ if you're going to help." The smaller boy smiled and made his way over to circuits embebbed into the brick wall.

With a little direction, and the help of Taku's cord shooter, they improvised a lever and pulley system to get all of the older boy's equipment up. Taku smiled and gave Hasaki's hair a ruffle as the strong little boy finished pulling him and the remote up.

"I did good?" the boy's returning smile had some teeth missing. Not all having fallen out naturally. Taku nodded and said for his brother to help him into the raised glass ceiling of the roof. "I don't get it," Hasaki complied, "What're we doing here, Gēgē?"

" _You're_ here cause you snuck out," he said, devising a similar set-up as before.

"Oooh."

Once the brothers were inside, they viewed large, light-yellow and white machines that were half-hidden in the shadows or by covers. The middle of the lab was wide and clear. Taku's trained eyes peered around until he spotted one of the biggest of the machines. He excitedly gestured for Hasaki to follow him as he lead his young brother over to the machine. Pulling out his laptop, Taku sat down cross-legged and directed Hasaki in what to hook up. The little boy wandered back up to him, curious.

"Taku, what are you building?"

His brother's eyes never looked up. "In a few years, San Fransoyko is going to be revolutionalized Hasaki. We're going to see some spectacular change and I want in."

"You mean like flying cars, re-gener-re-rating food and better healthcare?"

He tried to guess what Taku would tell him. The older boy then grinned up at him.

"No, Ani, like robots." Taku ruffled his hair once, picked up his remote and pushed forward on the toggle switches. Suddenly a light green screen flickered to life on the laptop and then over on a larger, indented screen in the middle of the long machine.

"Wow, Gege, it's like NASA!"

"Hmph, yeah, well. NASA hasn't dealt with me yet." he brought up a panel of coding, typed in a sequence and made the machine come to life. Hasaki gaped. "See? See! I told you." A large, armored design moved in time to a sequence of moves. "We don't _have_ to take years to learn martial arts or build things, not with my robots to help."

"Taku, you know what Yéye and Bàba said!"

"Yeye and Baba aren't here." The boy never looked up as the model moved faster. It was a few more moments before he said. "Now we're both gonna build this big guy."

" _Both? We're!?_ "

"Yep." Taku smiled at him.

Just then the sounds of feet running were heard down the hall. Both boys scrambled to gather their things and run for the open window 40 feet up in the air. They stood looking up, looked at each other and then rushed for the back door. Hasaki carried most of the equipment when sudden he heard his brother fall. The boy clutched his knee. "Owww..." Hasaki looked between Taku and his one final chance at freedom.

"Go!" Taku commanded him, pushing the laptop towards him. "Don't let'em get it."

It only took Hasaki a moment to know what to do.

...

"So what'd you do?" Fred, bouncing in place and noticeably free of his finger trap for the first time in four weeks, looked anxiously at Hasaki Yu-Hamada. The man grinned.

The entire team leaned in closer to hear what he would say. That is, all except Aunt Cass who kept herself busy in the back. Baymax squeezed an intrigued Hiro slightly closer to him and Hiro did the same; they both looked at each other in suspense and turned back to the uncle Hiro had met only yesterday. Hasaki raised his brows with comical suspicion, shifting his eyes from side-to-side, then shrugged as if not caring.

"They made me take my first language arts program." He leaned casually against the store's glass counter. "Sent Hiro and Tadashi's father to a _dōjō_. Of course," his eyes lowered to Hiro and he smirked. "Science camp would've been the real torture."

The team laughed with him, Hiro chuckled and looked at his uncle in admiration.

"Now Hiro takes after Taku's embracing of his Japanese heritage," Hasaki continued more seriously, straightening up and becoming more like an adult. "But my father-,"

"Now, wait wait." Wasabi cut him off, gesturing. "How does this all work?"

"Right, how does you being Chinese confirm that your Hiro's uncle?" GoGo added.

Aunt Cass and Baymax were the only ones to pick up on her actual suspicion.

Hasaki nodded and turned to Hiro with a smile, addressing their concerns as well as informing his nephew, "That's because you are 1/3 Chinese, Zhízi. On both sides."

Hiro's eyes widened as most of the team turned to a once-again stubborn Aunt Cass.

Baymax looked down at his best friend. "Should I swab and send for a DNA test?"

The teen gave him a squeeze, knowing he could do it at home, and walked forward.

"Uncle Hasaki," He awkwardly tried crossing his arms. "I'm not sure I get all this."

His uncle nodded. "I understand it's confusing."

"Hiro, _you_ **are _not_** Chinese!" Aunt Cass stormed around. Hasaki gave her a look that said _come-on-now_. Honey gave her shoulder a pat as she looked at Hiro helplessly.

"Aunt Cass," he prodded gently.

The woman closed her eyes and sighed. " _I'm_ a quarter Chinese, Hiro."

"And Chihiro," Hasaki mumbled.

Hiro lowered his brows doubtfully. "Why didn't you just tell me?"

It was his aunt's turn to give a _come-on-now_ look as their rotund robot waddled up.

"We are needed in the industrial district." Baymax said, showing a pin-pointed map.

"Oh!" Hiro said in surprise as everyone snapped to attention. "Right, let's go. Uh..."

"Just becareful," Aunt Cass told him when he sought her permission.

"Right." The teen grinned and turned to his team. "Ready, guys?"

They all looked at each other, pretending to be uncertain.

"Girls," Hiro only half-kidded.

The four reached out to rumple his hair and proceed out of the café.

Hasaki raised a brow and turned to his sister-in-law. "Aren't you going with them?"

"I have a café to run," She said as she intently cleaned a glass more then necessary.

"Uncle Hasaki, do you wanna come?" Hiro turned to him, his suit under one arm.

"More robotics, I presume?" His nephew nodded. "Bùyào. I keep fights non-artifical."

Hiro smiled slightly as he noticed his uncle turn to Aunt Cass when he said this.

"I'll see you later, then. Bye Aunt Cass." He headed out with the others.

Hasaki chuckled. "That boy has a lot to learn." When he turned back Cass was gone.

...

GoGo edged closer to Baymax as the team got their suits on in Lucky Cat Café alley.

"Baymax, I need to take Hiro aside and to talk with him." She said in low voice.

The half-suited robot looked at her.

"It's important," GoGo whispered.

He seemed to understand that she was asking him to lead them. The robot nodded wordlessly as Hiro climbed on top of him and led his team for the first mission in weeks. There was a real thrill despite quiet friction; they were all together again!

To be continued...

~ Lavenderpaw ~


	2. Fating temptations

**I.**

They arrived on the outskirts of town in a place that more then lived up to it's name; the smell of smog and fumes lingered all over. This was one place that could definitely benefit from a wind turbine. Hiro homed in on Baymax's signal with the phone he had attached to his wrist; one of the conditions for going on missions again so soon was for Baymax to be able to monitor his body's reaction to stress even when they were apart.

"OK, the signal's going this way." He directed his arm towards some cooling towers.

The large structures loomed like dark spires even though it was a fairly nice day.

"Baymax," GoGo said suddenly.

Hiro raised a brow and was surprised when the robot gently lifted him off his back. He looked into Hiro's confused eyes with speculation that went deeper then normal before giving Hiro a hug. The teen blinked once in confusion and then hugged the big bot back.

"GoGo wishes to talk with you," Baymax explained as he set him down.

"Is now the time?!" Wasabi actually edged towards the grey-blue darkness.

"It's more then that," she said.

The others looked at Hiro who, again, raised his brow. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Will it be all right if I temporarily lead the team and you rejoin us?" Baymax inquired.

Hiro looked at GoGo questioningly and she nodded.

"All right, I guess." He turned back around to his best friend.

The robot touched his head and the others patted him on the back as they left.

"Whatever it is, could it have waited until after our mission?" Hiro said to GoGo.

She shook her head slightly.

"Well, what is it?" He blanched. "This isn't about my safety again, is it?"

GoGo approached him and he really saw this wasn't about him.

"Hiro, I know what this mission is about. I need your help."

He continued looking confused as they stood in the gassy, grey air.

Her amber eyes were full of dread. "Hiro, a lot of my family bot fights down here. And it isn't illegal, but I'm worried. My cousins are in and out of enough trouble. I just..." she looked down. Hiro hesitantly reached out. "Tadashi always understood, because of you."

His own eyes then filled with understanding. She nodded. "I know, GoGo, I'll help you."

GoGo smiled her appreciation and Hiro smiled back. The girl then led him a secret way.

...

Hasaki stood on the landing of the Cat Café, looking at the smiling picture of his and Taku's mama. His smile was fond even if his eyes were quiet and distant. The thirty-nine-year-old man then looked up to find a picture of his brother (who's father was Japanese) and Chihiro, pregnant with Hiroto. He took a deep breath and then saw a grumpy-looking cat dressed as a blue alien: These kids really were into science fiction.

He shook his head and exhaled. " _Ahh-pubft_!"

"Still allergic I see?" Cassandra appeared with possibly the same but a much, _much_ rounder cat in her arms. She smiled smugly and stroked him. "The Lucky _Cat_ Café."

Hasaki chuckled, running his finger under his nose. "I see you're talking to me again."

"There's nothing to talk about," she carried her big, furry feline away.

"Is this place supposed to be closed? I know your grandmother left it to you..."

"Slow Sunday," Cassandra tied an apron around her waist. "Do you like the tile Baymax put down?" She smiled and indicated the colorful little tables that dotted her store front.

"Useful robot," he pursed out his lower lip, nodding.

"Caring paternal figure." She corrected as she disappeared into the back again.

...

"I'm not sure what I can say that's going to make them listen to me," Hiro complained.

GoGo came up to a vertical section in a railroad junkyard and lowered her eye to what Hiro recognized as an iris scanner. It read her eye as she pulled her top lid up helpfully.

"Make sure you close this and lock it down," GoGo said as she held open an enormous metal door for him. "It's sound-pressurized. Accoustics are good, but not in this case."

Hiro followed instructions and sealed it shut, but never took his eyes off her.

The two walked, still clad in their hero suits, down a twisting and turning maze of freight cars. GoGo led him around the corner and then immediately took off his helmet. He was asking even more questions as she swiftly and efficiently removed the top of his CF suit, then told him to take off the rest. Hiro really started grilling her when she removed her own. GoGo rolled her eyes and placed both their suits under a side-standing freight car.

"I'm still not understanding this?" Hiro took a step back.

"Come on," she placed her gum behind her ear and took him by the wrist.

Gogo led him further into the maze before releasing his arm so she could scale a slanted freight car laying on it's side. She looked back down with a smile and held out her hand. He returned one trustingly and took it, but gasped at the strength with which she lifted him. They both continued down into the grim and dark metal. Hiro, accustomed to the fly-by-night regime back when he used to bot-fight, thrilled at once. Fear hit his heart.

He tried to hide both. "GoGo, where are we going? What about the others?"

"They'll be safe," She reassured. "Now keep up, I haven't been here since college and I want to make a good impression." GoGo kept a protective hand on Hiro's shoulder until they reached an open corridor that led out into a massive steel bar and freight car ring.

"Uh... GoGo?" Hiro turned when he saw older, definitely rougher-looking teens then the two of them; even GoGo, and some of them were definitely not teens. "GoGo! Wait up."

"Ha-Jun, Ji-Min." GoGo said something quickly in Korean to two tall boys.

"Hey! Lethal Ethel."

GoGo glared.

"Hello, Leiko." The other boy said more shyly.

They spoke in Korean a bit more and then GoGo motioned Hiro to come without looking his way. "Boys, this is Tadashi's brother, Hiro. Hiro, these are my degenerate cousins."

"The Turbo Twins." Hiro brightened up immediately. "You both placed second statewide in San Anju four years ago." The boys went silent. Everyone did in fact. Hiro looked at a nodding GoGo and suddenly understood why they'd needed to dress normally. And yet.

And yet this still didn't explain why there were here...

"You're Hiro Hamada, the boy who took down Yama?"

He nodded, wondering if they were fans of his. Then he remembered who he was now.

"I gotta go..." The teen edged away.

"Hiro," GoGo touched his arm. "I think I know what's wrong; you need some of your old life back. This is a lot safer and we're not betting on bot fighting. I think you need this."

" _Bot fighting_?" Ha-Jun was offended. "Is that what you've been telling him this is?"

Even quiet Ji-Min was miffed. "We were penalized and are underground again. But we are not bot fighters." GoGo rolled her eyes like it mattered. "We are pro-botters, child."

"Believe me, I _know_ who you are. You were named the next Buzzin' Bot Cousins. But-,"

"Hiro, just give a go." GoGo encouraged. He saw she really thought this would help him.

" _Go?_ GoGo, we-," Both teens suddenly had his arms, lifted the complaining boy up to a couple more teens in a tall podium, and was then equipped with a remote and headset.

It was true; this was more like a big event for family and friends then an underground band of lowlifes... but it was still underground. "GoGo, this is ridiculous. We need to get back to the team." A robot bigger then Baymax 2.0, sky blue and burderned with gears, stomped it's way towards a tall, green robot with saw blades for arms. "Wait, what's...?"

"Welcome," Said an unseen voice. "To MEGA BOT BATTLES!"

Reverberations carried unknowingly out of the ring.

...

"I don't see anything," Wasabi griped.

"Maybe we're just not looking on the positive side..." Honey contributed.

"OK?" Fred looked at her, waiting.

"Not seeing anything _is_ a positive," she shrugged sheepishly.

"Baymax?" Wasabi turned to him.

"I can find no trace of the illegal robot fighers." He confirmed.

Reverberations echoed off the towers. Baymax raised his head as if to track something.

"Maxie?" Wasabi said as the robot's long-range scanner flashed blue.

"Hiro's pulse has increased, his breathing is rapid and heart is speeding to 200 BPM."

Fred gasped. "Whoa! I didn't know Hiro was into Business Process Management."

"Freddie, come on." Honey dragged him along.

Wasabi wasn't positive. "You don't think...?"

"I hope not."

...

Hiro moved the toggles on the remote as quickly as he could... it was all he could do to keep the robot from attacking the other one. There were shouts and complaints as the gathering of "professional" pro-botters grew increasingly upset that the teenager would not strike. At one point Hiro heard through his ear piece one of GoGo's cousins ask her if this was joke. Hiro's brows lowered indignantly as GoGo defended him... and fought.

The green bot and it's user were not expecting such a counterstrike. Hiro charged them both like a lightening-fast battering ram. GoGo and her cousins were getting excited as everyone else was, when the girl noticed Hiro wasn't enjoying himself. He was literally taking out his anger and frustration on this other robot. She borrowed Ha-Jun's master headset and tried to talk to Hiro. The younger teen glared down at her where she stood.

" _You're_ the one who dragged me down here!" He told her once his opponent backed off.

"Hiro, I was just... HIRO!"

Her shouting his name snapped him back into focus and he went back to fighting, but the green bot was thrashing down hard on his robot. GoGo yelled at him to fight back like before, but there was no getting the teen to react. Hiro watched, frozen in place, while his bot was beaten about... and slapped, pushed, battered. Gears went flying. It wasn't hard to predict when the now bloodthirsty crowd was anticipating the end game.

"What's the matter with you?" One of GoGo's weird cousins asked. "Fight back!"

"Too late," Came the more sage cousin's distant voice.

Hiro stood up straight as one of the large saw blade arms were raised, ready to behead the crippled and broken robot. Suddenly, a flash of broken red came into his mind's eye and fell rapidly away... torn, lost. Hiro leapt down almost nine feet from the podium and went at a madcap sprint for the green robot. GoGo was horrified, but her reactions were in her speed as well. She rushed for one of the ref ladders and scaled it to go after him.

The teen ignored the shouts and jeers as he came up behind the robot.

With practice, Hiro scrambled up it's back and threw his hands out to stop where the big blade would have made contact with the blue bot's neckline. The loud buzzing that cut out most of the people's voices came to a complete stop. Hiro, amazed not to be turned into shredded cheese, unfroze when that the green bot was actually blinking at him. He slowly turned to look at the blue bot who wasn't Baymax but looked at him in curiosity.

Hiro looked in shock at all the shocked faces around him and then grinned, giving them a nervous wave. "Hiro," Someone said tiredly. He turned to see GoGo staring up at him.

The teen dropped his shoulders in relief when she offered him her hand.

She exhaled, helping him down. Fear for his safety and pride for his bravado in what he believed in warred with each other as she dusted him off. Fear won out. There was a look of resignation on Hiro's face that almost matched hers as arguments broke out everywhere. GoGo leered her cousins' way when the two radioed for them to get out...

And not come back.

...

"Come now, Sǎozi." Hasaki kept following Cassandra around as she served her few yet loyal Café goers. "If you must deny the boy half of his heritage, at least add some less modern touches to your baba's home... spring for some vintage tatami mats." She gave a hiss under her breath, not unlike a cat. "Maybe lower the tables, a no-shoes policy..."

Even her most devout regulars looked up.

"Pay him no mind," Cass smiled at them pleasantly. "Mr brother-in-law was only very recently released from an asylum on Akuma Island." Others who weren't within range of her gaze took that opportunity to bolt. Cassandra growled now and took hold of Hasaki.

"Oh, my! _I'm_ the one in need of professional help?" He chuckled as she yanked him by the arm to the back of the kitchen; everyone else left. "A nice machiya remodel, Cass."

"Don't call me that!" Was the first words out of her mouth when she got him cornered.

"Cassie?" Hasaki shrugged broadly.

There was a blip from her pocket and she removed her phone to the man's rolling eyes.

"Yes... oh, okay. Oh... yeah." She sighed as she hung up.

"Cassandra?"

The woman really looked at her brother-in-law. "If you're staying, you're _helping_."

Hasaki's eyes widened.

Her own set stare not only confirmed that Cassandra _did_ know why he was still there, but that she planned to make the most of it. He nodded and followed her back out. A blitz signaled him on his old neon watch and he pulled his sleeve down to hide his scars.

 **II**.

"That was close!" GoGo exclaimed like a criminal escaping with her loot.

"No, that was _dangerous_." Hiro scolded her.

She rolled her eyes as they pulled their suits on, like he was a self-righteous child who thought he knew everything. Hiro scoffed. "What?! It wasn't illegal. It was just for fun."

"Fun?! You think nearly getting beaten up and going to jail is _fun_!?"

The sudden look in GoGo's eyes showed a real desire for violence. Hiro stepped back. It was then that a guilted concern replaced this and she turned away. Something odd hit Hiro; like he'd just dissed his mom for trying to take an interest in his likes. GoGo let out a sigh. "Hiro, no one was going to hurt you. Mega bot fighting is a legit sport and..."

"And what?" He was defensive again. "It's okay to almost get sawed in half?"

"You left the door unlocked." She was more incredulous then angered.

Said door suddenly swung open and the rest of the team looked in on them.

To be continued...

 **A/N:** Hopin' you're likin' this story so far. ^^ Don't worry, as always, most everything ties in together. Hasaki plays a big role in Hiro's life and there'll be more Baymax. So no worries! TY for reading. Reviews are always appreciated but not anticipated or required.

~ Lavenderpaw ~


	3. Lessons to Legacy: Pt 1 of 3

**I.**

 _'It goes something like this:_ I _got the brilliant idea of pretending there was gambling going on here and that people were in danger._ GoGo _went after_ me. She _had nothing-,'_

"GoGo, what would Tadashi say?" Wasabi folded his arms, raising a brow flatly.

Hiro shook his head and realized the confession had only been in his mind.

"You HAVE to tell the Turbo Twins about me! Tell _them_ , _I_ can sponsor them."

Honey touched Fredzilla's arm, smiled politely and then walked up to GoGo and Hiro.

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!" She exploded. Hiro backed up. "Not you, Híro." Honey Lemon said gently while touching his chin. "Leading us on like that and with Híro, too."

"GoGo did not send the alert," Baymax intervened, but implications were lost on him.

"You're right," She looked at her friends. "I did take this chance to go see my family... and I did put Hiro at risk." The young woman looked at the confused teen. A teen, not quite a boy nor yet a man, who was looking more irritated as time went on. "I'm sorry."

Baymax picked up on Hiro's growing anger.

The teen had only one thing to say. "What on earth is going on?"

His team had to hide their smiles at his puffiness; he looked just like his aunt right now.

"TEAM? You _knew_ about this."

Wasabi scratched at his neck,

"Yeah, well, most of us used to follow the pro-botting circuit when we were younger."

Honey shrugged but tried to be helpful. "We've actually been to a few games."

Fred raised his suit's head down. "You weren't scared, were you?"

"No." Hiro wasn't amused, either. "So we lost valuable time and effort for nothing?"

Wasabi touched his arm. "Dude, it's not like this happens every day. Someone probably just got peeved and sent a fake alert; it happens. We go on missions pretty regularly."

A month hadn't felt that long to Hiro, but he saw it'd been much longer for his team.

"All right," He tossed up his arms. "We'll issue them a warning." His team was unsure. "Team, I'm fine. It's not like it was before. I'm going to be a better leader, so don't..."

Hiro was going to say more but there was a thrashing noise like the battling was outside of the ring. He looked at everyone; they seemed more then fine with leaving. Hiro gave whoever had sent the alert a warning text. _Please_ only contact us if there's real danger. Irritation reared up again and Hiro led his team away without finishing his epic speech.

Baymax lingered behind a bit. "Should I shut their door to prevent a draft?"

 **II**.

"What am I going to say to him?" Aunt Cass paced the empty floor. " _Another_ relapse?"

"Saozi, relax." Hasaki took a sip of his unpaid-for tea. "He's a Hamada. He's tough..."

She glared at him, but for the unsolicited advice, lack of funds or overall irritation...

Maybe any name he called her would drive her nuts.

"You know I'm not good at this," He got up and held out his hands. Cassandra stopped and looked at him with torn green eyes. Responsibility was triggered. "Cassie," She let him touch her arms. "The first thing you have to do is _not. blame. yourself_. Hiroto had a brother with both self-taught and parental discipline. It's **in** Hiro... just, kinda dormant."

Cassandra smiled at him and Hasaki realized she was reflecting his words.

"Hands, Hasaki. Where do they go?"

He blinked, saw they were resting on her forearms, and lifted them like she was a police officer. Cassandra seemed to be remembering something and gave him a kiss easily on the cheek; Hamadas could be tough, smart and infrequently on the short side at times.

He never had liked the little brother angle. "Cassie..." Hasaki tried again.

The front door opened. Everyone was in their normal clothing.

"False alarm," Wasabi entered first.

"Can I help you bake some brownies?" Honey asked. Cass just motioned her on.

Fred looked guilty but said nothing.

GoGo and Hiro were talking.

"Look, I'll take the rap," The younger teen was saying.

"Hiro, if your aunt bans anyone, it'll be me. Tadashi got me to stop the first time and I did so I'd have better grades..." Instead of saying more, she brushed her bangs back.

"Well, look, Aunt Cass is probably busy with my uncle. When she asks I'll confront her."

"Hiro." Aunt Cass confronted him.

"Or you can." He jumped behind GoGo.

Baymax strangely lingered outside, gazing up towards Hiro's room.

Big, gold-brown eyes gazed up at his aunt worriedly from under a mop of charcoal hair.

GoGo and Baymax came in beside him when someone jumped forth.

"Yes, young man!" Hasaki exclaimed, his finger in the air for emphasis. "And just _where_ have you been exactly? Your aunt and I were worried sick about you and your welfare."

Hiro grinned widely.

"Prolonged worry can lead to real physical ailments."

GoGo nodded at Baymax with a smile.

"I'm sorry, Aunt Cass." she said. "It really was my fault. I had family down there but it wasn't an excuse to put Hiro at risk like that." There was real shame on her face now.

Baymax gave her shoulder a pat. "We understand. We are your family, too."

"Well..." The woman sighed and looked around at everyone. "No one got hurt..." she noticed the color in her nephew's cheeks, the light in his eyes. Cass looked around the store once more to see who was responsible... and her eyes settled on her jiěfu. "I think I know what to do. Hiro, you and your Uncle Hasaki are going to spend every afternoon together this week. Three hours... _minimum_." she smiled and nodded. This was genius.

"But Aunt Cass! If something comes up..."

"Cassandra, be reasonable. I..."

"You want to be grounded?" When Aunt Cass said this, she looked as Hasaski warningly.

"It's not that I don't like my uncle, but..." "He's a wonderful boy, Cassandra, but..."

" _Seven_ days. _Three_ hours. _Every._ _after_. _noon_."

"Well..." Hiro hedged, scratching his hair. "I guess you could go with me on missions..."

Hasaki smiled dismissively. "I think I'll pass."

"And Baymax will watch you," Aunt Cass also smiled, furthering her conditions.

"That leaves us four short!" Hiro complained. He definitely remembered this last week.

From behind him, Fred made a quick size comparison between him and Hiro. He grinned at Wasabi and received an elbow to the ribs. Hasaki caught that immediately, adjusted an invisible tie and cleared his throat. "Cassandra, I think I know exactly how to spend our time together," he said. Hiro looked at him in surprise. "If my nephew is up for it?"

 _His_ nephew brightened up at this. Baymax touched his shoulder in encouragement.

"What'd you say, Maxie?" Hiro turned to him.

"I would be honored to accompany you as you re-establish relations with your uncle."

His friend chuckled a little as the robot bowed his head.

Hasaki wanted to say "Let's just keep the "My Maxie" stuff to a minimum, but as often as not he didn't. He looked at Cassandra and saw she was more then happy with this. It didn't take much for Hasaki to give in then, but how could he keep Hiroto safe like Taku had implored him? He shook his head to the memories and nodded at his only nephew.

...

"What do you see?" He asked in Chinese.

"I see my father... with Hiroto. With all of them."

Dian sat perched upon the building farthest and yet parallel to the Lucky Cat Café, over electrical wires used by one of few streetcars still in operation. The young woman didn't see a cheery café, she didn't recognize a loving family. Dian Yu saw only what her dear Uncle Yu had told her: betrayal. Like Taku Hamada, like all the Hamadas before them...

She stood up in her slick, black suit. "I'll avenge you," Shou's niece said as she lowered her phone, which acted as a telescope through the camera on it. "Just give me some..."

"Time? No. Time isn't what we have. I want Hiroto delivered to me."

"What about my brother?" She asked in surprise, using English. "Ah-haaaa!" The shock came on her ankle. Dian looked fearfully down at her father Hasaki, concerned for him.

"He's had his removed, you idiot." Shou hissed in Mandarian. "One of those girls down there he convinced in a moment when no one was looking to deactivate the collar on his wrist. **Now** ," His niece gasped. "I do not think I need to remind you what has happened to all other Yu and Hamadas who have crossed me. Your brother betrayed me when he gave information... _defied orders_... to those defective inferiors." He remembered at the same time she did when he'd told them; how those teenagers had stood against Shou.

How they had not bent even at threats to their familys' well-being.

"Keep monitoring." He ordered. "Let me know when the time is right to intervene. Your father may be resourceful, but my little brother always screws up. It's won't take much time." Shou Yu hung up from his secret office, thinking of the one battle he'd lost. The war, he knew, would be his. "I have to keep things on my side... I need Hiro Hamada."

To be continued...

~ Lavenderpaw ~


	4. Lessons to Legacy: Pt 2 of 3

**I.**

"And... why are we here again?"

Hiro grinned at his Uncle Hasaki in the forest-green scrubs. "We're completing my aid certification." he said smugly, then turned back to Baymax as they stood beside a bed.

"Now the first thing I will be demonstrating is proper bedside manner." He raised his finger on the last part. "You will need to address your patients in a loud, clear voice."

Nephew and uncle exchanged curious looks and then watched.

Baymax turned to the sleeping woman and a speaker sign appeared on his chest:

 _ **"** **Mrs. Mitsuki."**_

"GAAAAH." Hiro clamped his hands over his ears, pitching sideways.

 ** _"It is time for your meds."_**

"Lă shī!" Hasaki copied him.

Mrs. Mitsuki continued sleeping.

...

The door to Hua Yu's cell slid open and he looked up with weary, red-brown eyes to see that the officer was holding out a Sharphone for him to talk with someone on the outside. The young man groaned and buried his face into his hands. _Not Dabai again._

"It's your sister."

This got Hua's attention. He stood, brushed his tall, limber self off and walked out into the hall. The officer folded his arms and watched as Hua took the phone and talked on it like he was just a normal guy out on the streets. But Hua, born Hua Shou Yu, knew who he was. He was a great spy and tech thief for his very rich, very dangerous uncle.

"It took you long enough to get to the phone," his sister spat in Mandarin.

"Why have you not forwarded the bail money?" He wanted to know.

There was a long pause.

"...This is goodbye."

"What?!" Hua exploded into frantic, angered Mandarin. Finally, when he felt she wasn't listening, the man blurted out in English. "WHAT DID FATHER ALWAYS SAY, DIAN!?" It was enough of a scene that should have caused many officers to descend upon him, a tradition in Hua's family he'd seen many times before. But no one stopped the man in his enraged state and so he panicked. "Dian, one does not abandon their family. We... we are faithful," Hua tried to remember his father's words. "Reliable... strong, _loyal_..."

"As you were when you revealed what happened to Hiroto's parents." She was quiet and matter-of-fact. Her brother's eyes widened as his arm lowered. No. **_NO_.** Hua then begged her for death. He begged her for further interest in his fate. Execution for his disloyality was more then preferable over life without a family. He'd take death over banishment just as many Yu had for millennia. "No, you will live, brother. Goodbye."

She hung up. Hua had nothing.

 **II**.

"So... why are we blindfolded again?" Hiro subtly complained.

It was day-two of their mandated week together and Hasaki had said it was his turn now to pick the day's activity. Every time Hiro would turn in the passenger's seat of the beat-up old VW to ask questions, his uncle would just laugh. They went up steep mountain passes outside San Fransoyko (Hiro knew this because there were no traffic sounds) and occasionally drove over streams and rivers. Finally, impatience won out.

"Okay, I'm literally taking this blindfold off and jumping out of this stupid car."

A hand half-expectedly came to rest on Hiro's head and he was both slightly annoyed and reassured by this. "You blindfolded me yesterday, Hiro." Baymax reminded him.

He grinned.

"And I didn't take any chances," Hasaki added, noting the blindfold he'd also placed on the robot. The man drove to a big wooden and metal structure built into the side of a mountain. "All right, we're here," he announced proudly. "You can take them off now."

Hiro felt around the strange, rough sash on his eyes.

Hasaki chuckled. "I know the fabric is light in color now, but it'll darken."

His nephew and Baymax removed two, tan-colored sashes to see the strange building they were driving towards. It was built _into_ the earth and the long, winding roads they drove on moved with the mountains and hills. Hiro was agape in his wild imagination.

"W... where are we?! _An ancient temple_? Whoa! Are you... are you like an old master of some forgotten kung-fu magic? Do I come from a line of mystical karate warriors?!"

"Yes, young one!" Hasaki said in a deep, sage voice. His eyes widened in mystery as Hiro bounced up and down. "You must pass the three tests of wisdom, discipline and self-worth to enter the Temple of Magical Kung-Fu Karate Warriors." he looked ahead.

"O... OK! When do I start?"

"Hiro." His best friend said from the backseat, which he took up almost completely.

"Yeah, Baymax."

"I do not believe your uncle is serious when he says this."

...

"Fantastic noodles, Miss H." Wasabi said, placing down his bowl.

"Add plenty of soy sauce?"

"Didn't need to," he lounged back and patted his flat stomach.

Honey handed over the group's pay as it was her turn this time.

Cassandra sighed and lifted a hand. "It's on the house," she smiled.

There was a loud thump on the roof. The few customers she did have today scattered.

"We're gonna have to take that," Fred cracked his fingers in a big arm-stretch.

"That reminds me," GoGo turned to face him. "Now that your finger trap thing is gone, you don't have the excuse of not getting your wallet out. You OWE us for four weeks!"

Fred looked around at all of them, mid-crack-stretch. "Uh... hey! We're down to four."

The team suddenly turned to Aunt Cass with angelic smiles.

She dropped her head, sighing again. "It was just for that one time." Cass offered the four a weary smile. "When I was worried about Hiro. But don't fret, Hasaki is sending over a pair of stand-ins for this week and Hiro retrofitted his and Baymax's suits." She left with a shrug. When Big Hero 6 turned they saw the source of the thumping noise:

Their temporary teammates.

 **III**.

"When you enter your grandfather's dojo," Hasaki said as he drove them up under two intricately carved pillars and around to the front of a very ornate red marble and gold inlaid temple. "You must show the utmost respect." his bottom lip stuck out. "I don't suppose you received the proper instruction when entering and leaving, wǒ de zhízi."

Hiro grinned and bowed his head.

His uncle nodded back with that polite smile he always managed. "We'll work on it."

The boy frowned.

They drove into a standard parking garage, went up four levels and then everyone got out beside an elevator. Well, almost. In the midst of Hiro trying to pull his best friend out of the back while also asking if this was going to exceed three hours, Hasaki had removed his plain black coat to reveal a contoured, two-tone Tang shirt underneath it.

"Okay... now I'm _really_ confused." Hiro said as he and Baymax stood-by-side.

Hasaki held a match beside what looked to be a bamboo door. It caught and a hidden fuse sparked. The elevator slid open and the man motioned them in with a knowing smile; the corners of which started to turn down when he realized a big balloon man would also be squeezing into their suddenly tiny compartment. Hiro chuckled darkly.

"Everywhere?" His uncle asked.

"Pretty much," the boy happily poked his buddy's squished-up belly.

"I will attempt to let out some air."

"NO!" Hiro and Hasaki said at the same time.

"I'm guessing the valves that contain the fluid are highly sensitive to-,"

" _Very_."

Hiro turned back to poke Baymax in reassurance while Hasaki bit his tongue as usual.

...

Meikomo sipped on her apple-ginger flavored soda. "Hmm." she tapped gently on a flat button and on three wide monitors saw every angle, corner and shot of The Yu-Hamada Temple. "Huh?" The girl clicked on a button toward the top of the console.

The screen zoomed in with sharp precision; It was satellite feed coming in and from a source Mei had made sure to block. She dropped her shoulders and re-routed it rather then blocking it now. The only thing the hacker would see was the apple orchard they grew out back. She grinned the last time she'd sent the feed to their botanical garden.

Something of greater quality re-re-routed. Meikomo gasped, tucked her soda can in between her legs and typed in a faster sequence. It was blocked. The girl was about to contact her lóuhyèh when she saw Hiro Hamada exiting the elevator with Hasaki and a large white creature into the lowest part of the temple. Her brown eyes widened but it wasn't for the man's company; Mei quickly downed her soda and crushed the light teal can to her head. Thinking quickly, she sat on her evidence. Of course he was too busy.

 _Of course_ he couldn't know!

Meikomo glanced nervously and saw the note Hasaki had left her:

'Just because I'm not here, that doesn't mean I don't know everything. You are not to drink consumer-based products in the exclusive Yu-Hamada Dojo. Is that understood?'

"Yes," she said, wishing she could read Mandarin.

Unforunately, Meikomo still remembered part of his verbal warning.

...

"Wow," Hiro and Baymax stopped at a large, dark bronze statue. The Chinese Dragon clasped a classical yin/yang symbol in it's claw. Beside the dragon was a maroon and brown, temple-faced entrance. It began to dawn on Hiro that he should ask questions.

"Do you know what the meaning of this is?" Hasaki extended a hand.

"Sure, yin and yang," his nephew pronounced them more correctly then in his head. "The yang in life represents opposition and yin represents passiveness. Two halves."

"Yes, but yang is the white one and yin is the dark one."

Hiro waved a hand at it dismissively, scoffing. "Yeah, I knew that. I was just... heh."

Hasaki smiled at the statue and assumed a position where one might bow. "There's a definite controversy that arises whenever tradition meets... less tradition," he looked at Hiro but it wasn't to exemplify him. "When we're met with something that tries to change or hinder us, we resist. Fight. But sometimes yang isn't what you'd expect..."

Baymax and Hiro looked at each other.

"Sometimes yang can be a positive thing." Hasaki nodded.

The two friends looked back at the yin-yang symbol. Baymax hugged Hiro to his side and Hiro smiled and hugged back. Hasaki lifted a brow and shook his head. He held a match to the side of the temple's gate and then everyone watched as the noisy fuse travelled up the wick to bronze-dragon emblazoned fireworks. Hiro gave a jerk back.

Hasaki raised a brow at him, smirking, as the two shot up into unseen channels and a squirt of what had to be water was shot. The temple doors flew open and Hasaki gave a bow to the big statue. Nervously, the boy copied him. Baymax only looked his way.

"Why do you both bow to the painted lizard?"

"Tradition...?" Hiro said with an awkward half-grin.

"Will it help your emotional-,"

Two inner chamber doors opened and a long network of catwalks veered off into a big, Olympic-sized room. Hiro and Baymax followed Uncle Hasaki inside as curved, smaller rooms that were fitted with thick glass shot up towards an endless ceiling. Classes and different forms of Martial Arts, Meditation and such were going on. Hiro gaped at all of the different styles; it was only when he felt Baymax's soft arm around him did he see that they were only one-hundred feet or so from the rounded floor. Hiro's mind raced.

"The distance is one-hundred and eighteen feet to the ground level." Baymax told him.

"And carbon-fiber glass, right?" Hiro grinned at his uncle's back. He furrowed his brow when he heard the man sigh, since his insight rarely failed to impress people. "Nano polymer?" he tried again unsuccesfully as Hasaki led them both to a plain, wood door.

Baymax seemed to be holding Hiro closer to him than he had the previous day.

"Buddy, let up." The teen complained.

The robot blinked at him but did as he was told. Hasaki looked over his shoulder.

"Sorry, Maxie." Hiro tucked himself back under his arm. "It _is_ a little close-cutting."

Hasaki cleared his throat before they could look up more accusing then questioning.

"This is where we leave all technology at the door," he said calmly, more like a monk then an uncle... or secret spy ninja warrior. Hiro slowly pulled out his phone and set it in his palm. Then came his Tablet, a few laser-point screw drivers, a new thumb drive with new passkeys he gave to Baymax, his personal scanner, a piece of azure metal...

"Must've come off of that one robot," Hiro noted when Baymax asked. "Our mission."

The robot nodded.

Hasaki gave the confiscated tech goods a skeptical look. "Is that all?" he finally said.

Hiro shrugged. "Just me and Baymax."

The man sighed as they moved forward,

"All technology has to be left at the door." he placed a hand on Baymax's arm.

Hiro looked between the two. "What?! Oh, come on. Baymax is practically a Buddha."

"It has been shown through scans that rubbing my belly increases dopamine levels!"

His small friend nodded energetically to this and did so. "He's good luck, Uncle H."

Hasaki sighed to himself, smiling tightly. "All technology is to be left out here." he did offer Baymax a peaceful head bow which the robot returned, then entered the room...

Rather normally, as it turned out.

"I believe your uncle wishes to teach what he knows, grow closer to you."

Hiro looked at Baymax in worry. The robot touched his arms. "I will be with you."

The tension left Hiro instantly and he gave Baymax as strong a hug as his small arms could give. Hasaki cleared his throat and led Hiro into a dojo that wasn't quite like he'd ever seen. He turned to see Baymax as the door closed seemingly by itself. Hiro then turned back to witness an enormous, rocky cavern filled with training pits, meditation gardens and stony podiums the highest of which Hasaki had already ascended up to.

"I want to help you, Hiro." The man said gravely. "I want to make you a true fighter."

To be continued...

~ Lavenderpaw ~


	5. Lessons to Legacy: Pt 3 of 3

**I.**

 _The Lucky Cat Café..._

"Well," Wasabi moved his arms back and forth, readying himself as always.

"Well, what?" GoGo countered with an anti-climax. "It's just my two idiot cousins."

They were both in their mid-twenties with straight black hair and matching suits.

"Hey Ethel." The oldest one grinned, flexing his red-black, leather-clad arms.

"Hello Leiko."

"Uh... Leiko?" Wasabi repeated.

Honey and Fred looked at each other and then at Aunt Cass.

"We're..."

"Confused."

"It's the right thing," she assured them. Hiro needed to get to know his uncle.

"No, they're confused as to why Hasaki chose my idiot cousins _._ " GoGo clarified.

...

"Hiroto, this is where I was taught martial arts... This is where Taku, your father, was taught." He said before Hiro could correct him. "I would like you to be next."

The honesty in his gold-brown eyes stopped Hiro from asking more about his dad.

Hasaki smiled. "I can be your teacher. I can instruct in the same discipline all of our family has been taught." All this time he had been coming closer. "Do you accept?"

Hiro considered him another moment, thought about his close encounter with the robot from his last mission, and gave a bow. "So, do I call you sensei or _kun_ or...?"

"Sifu will do."

The teen looked up.

Hasaki suppressed a laugh. "Kidding. Uncle Hasaki will do, Hiroto."

"But why-?"

"Do not question your sifu." His uncle said with adept calmess. He faced Hiro on a spin and flashed out his hands. "When fighting someone most would use strength."

Hiro grinned and raised his arms like he was flexing.

Hasaki smiled patiently. "But you can't use that. Instead, you have to use _this_."

His nephew brushed back his bangs, cocky. "Yeah, yeah. I know. I'm a genius."

"Yes, you are." the man nodded, still calm. "But you're not very smart."

Hiro gave him a look.

"Hiroto." Hasaki scolded.

The boy snapped to attention as his uncle confronted him. "Disrespect in this dojo will not be tolerated." he stopped. "Having respect for others starts with yourself."

...

"Do you guys like finger traps?!" Fred grinned, holding up fistfuls of colorful paper.

GoGo pushed him out of the way. "What he means is, can you translate probotting into superhero-ing?" Ha-Jun and Ji-Min looked at each other. "Fine. Super-botting."

"You guys are superheroes?" The more outspoken of the two asked.

"Aunt Cass, get Hiro's uncle on the phone!"

"GoGo." Honey tried reasoning with her.

"He doesn't have a cell phone of his own," Aunt Cass mumbled into her coffee pot.

Wasabi touched her arm. "Lei..." he saw her glare. "GoGo. Like it or not, Big Hero 6 fuctions best with _six_ members. Hiro needs some time with his family, with Hasaki."

" _We_ are his family." She countered.

"But Aunt Cass knows what's best for him." Honey insisted.

A new alert came on their phones.

GoGo sighed, disgruntled. "Okay, can you two numbskulls at least fly?"

"Well," Ji-Min tapped at his corrugated leather suit. "Hasaki Hamada did say these suits were stretchable and..." He was suddenly fitted with a Chinese finger trap as was Ha-Jun. The two "members" were carried out of the café by Wasabi and GoGo.

"YES! Now someone else will know the tor...I mean, _fun_ of being entrapped!"

Honey Lemon looked back at Aunt Cass as she methodically cleaned her glass top.

The woman seemed to sense this and looked up, offering a kind smile.

"You don't always have to be so brave," the girl said to her.

 _Actually, I do._ "You go on ahead with the others." She said.

Unconvinced but needed elsewhere, Honey complied.

Cassandra didn't look around at her clean, empty store. She didn't glance at all of the empty chairs or hear the still quiet upstairs. She didn't even see the pictures.

Cassandra Yuri-Hamada only saw that Mochi needed food and went in back for it.

...

 _1995._

"You need to meet these girls!" Taku Hamada said as he led his still-teen brother to the spot where he and the two sisters had agreed to meet. "They're not the usual."

"Okay fine," the short, but built Hasaki agreed, "but _who's_ your big brother?!"

"Ani!" Taku complained as the boy caught him in a surprise headlock.

"WHO'S your big brother?" Hasaki anchored him down, ruffling his hair with his fist.

"You are, Ani!" He exclaimed in defeat.

" _WHO'S_ your Ani?" The teen held him closer, comically pretending he couldn't hear.

Taku struck gold when he located his brother's underarm.

"But only when we're not in public," he chuckled evilly. It took only one poke.

"Hey! Hey!" Hasaki granted him a release.

But Taku wasn't done yet. "Who's your Ani, now?! _Who's your Ani now_?" He started messing up his brother's hair when he spotted the two teenaged girls waiting under a metal lamp that hung over the entrance to a wired gate. "Chichi, Cassie, I was just getting Hasaki to come and meet...oh! Hasaki, ChiChi and Cassie. Cassie and ChiChi, Hasaki." They met the two flannel, denim-frayed girls in near pitch black.

Chihiro smiled from under her dyed-black bangs. "So you're Hasaki."

"Sure am." He pulled up confidently on his leather jacket lapels.

"You can call me Chihiro or ChiChi, but Cassandra sort of prefers..."

"I thought you both were in college," Cassandra pointed out.

"We are, part-time college students." Taku was quick but nervous.

"And _professional_ part-time botters." Hasaki jerked a thumb at himself, then Taku.

"You're bot-fighters?"

"No. No no no no no. Probotters. Botfighting is for street gangs, Cassie."

Her curiosity turned to contempt. "That's... Cassandra."

Hasaki grinned. "You got it, Cas _si_ andra." he pronounced it like he was Latino.

ChiChi and Cassie looked at each other.

"Uh... ladies, please. My brother fell out of a college auditiorium when he was five."

They giggled a little and ChiChi accepted Taku's arm to go in.

"I'll be there in a minute." Cassie said. She pulled out her blue compact and a tube of lipstick. Her brows went down a little when Hasaki scooted into her line of vision, then went back to evening out her red coat. Without Taku, he started stumbling up.

"So... Cassandra, Chihiro. Why not choose two names that are both culturally...? I mean, Chihiro means "One-Thousand". It's Japanese, of course. And Cassandra..."

"My name is Cassie."

"Right. Right. Right. _Cassie_... wait, I thought you preferred Cassandra."

"Look, I don't what my sister sees in you." She pecked his chest with her compact on 'what'. "Or Taku, for that matter. Everyone respects Taku Hamada at S.F Tech and a lot of people know him at the local university. But you, _who_ are you exactly?"

"I'm Hasaki!" He said with a grin.

"Ughhh..."

"Hasaki _Yu_ -Hamada." the teen continued. "Our mother was married twice when..."

"Fire."

"Huh? No. There was no fire. Although Mama did say I was pretty hot when..."

"No... I mean, FIRE!" Cassie pointed out into the middle of the railcar-littered yard.

"Taku." Hasaki murmured.

" _My sister!_ " The girl nearly screamed.

"Listen," he caught her arm, she looked at him with running liner. "Up the road a bit...Taku and me passed a payphone coming in. Take this change and get help."

"What about you?!" Cassie Yuri really did scream now.

Hasaki's response was to run into the maze of railcars after his brother and date.

 **II**.

Hiro knew how this worked.

"So... you're gonna have me do a bunch of chores and I'm gonna learn karate..."

"YAAAAHHHHHHHHH." Hasaki charged right at him at a dead sprint.

Hiro yelled and threw his arms up. When nothing happened, he blinked and met his certain look. He nodded, dusting off his sleeves. "Yes, well, if it'd been anyone else you would've been killed," he said. Hiro folded arms and frowned, unamused.

"To attention." His uncle commanded without looking up.

His nephew complied, rolling his eyes.

"Hiroto, do you like looking at ceilings?"

The boy's jaw dropped open.

"You wanted to ask me something?"

Hiro turned serious. "Why did you bring me here?"

Hasaki really looked at him. "Because I want to help you..." he stepped over to a stream and put his fingers in it. Hiro raised a brow. "Well, come on. It's part of it."

His nephew joined him and placed his own fingers in. "Do you have a hydroplant?"

There was a pause for thought. "If you try to fight this current, what will happen?"

"Uh... you'll lose?"

Hasaki smiled. "You'll lose energy. Possibly even getting hurt in the process."

"Hmm... what if you just _don't_ move." Hiro thought he had it that time.

"What'd _you_ think?" The man questioned his statement.

"I... I think my way out," Hiro looked up, confident. "I try to find a new angle."

Hasaki nodded. "What if there are no angles?"

"Um..." Hiro looked down and lowered his brows.

His uncle's gaze lingered on him a moment, then returned to the water.

"What if there's no way out?" He asked very softly.

"What?" Hiro said in a regular pitch.

"You'll find a way out," The man tried smiling again at his rippling reflection.

"Uncle... I do wanna know more. I want to learn what you have to teach me."

"Your curiosity has my attention," Hasaki met his eyes. It was now that the 14-year -old realized they were kneeling. "When you've figured out the answer to what you should do in a current, then you no longer need my teaching." he stood up slowly.

"So... can I go?" Hiro jumped up and tilted his head.

Hasaki nodded without looking.

"It's been three hours."

There was a pause from Hiro this time.

"So I _can_ come back?" his nephew asked tentatively.

Hasaki came out of his reverie. "Yes, Hiroto. Of course. Would you like a ride?"

"Baymax and I have bus passes."

"Your things are waiting by the door."

Hiro nodded, lingered another moment, then raced out into his own world.

"Bow to the dragon." Hasaki called after him.

"Yes, Uncle!"

The man stepped closer to the water's edge. "In good time, Taku. In good time."

...

The door to the Lucky Cat Café chimed open.

"Hey, Big Heroes." Aunt Cass said in a chipper voice.

"Ugggh," They all chorused.

"I made you six some specialized muffins," she smiled at them.

"Ugggh."

The four young veterans sat at their usual place dirt-coated, hair disarrayed and unsuited as GoGo's cousins argued outside of the café. Honey noticed the lift in Aunt Cass's spirits and commented on it. She giggled as she set down the platter.

"Oh..." The woman gave a shake of her head. "It's nothing. How'd the mission go?"

She really did notice them now.

"Uh..."

"Hey, guys!"

Aunt Cass smiled down warmly at her confections as Hiro and Baymax walked in.

"HIRO!"

Instead of grabbing their leader up, Baymax grabbed all them up.

"I guess the day was successful?" she looked hopefully at her nephew.

"Yeah! But I'm really just glad to be home." Baymax released them as he said this.

Aunt Cass nodded carefully to herself and smiled as they all took their muffins now with a little more enthusiasm. "So... I guess four days is enough, huh?" she took up the round dish under her arm and headed for the back of her café, feeling satisfied.

"Acutally, I was going to train with him every night for the next few weeks."

Shock ran up Cassandra's spine, her eyes widened.

His team started to argue.

"And... and..." Hiro gestured. "I was hoping you all would join us?" He looked up.

"It is all right with me." Baymax confirmed.

Everyone started talking all at once again.

"But..." Aunt Cass came forward suddenly. "Not Baymax. You can't bring tech in."

"Yeah... um, how'd you know that?" Hiro asked her.

"Oh, uh, Hasaki told me. Just before you three left this morning."

"But Baymax isn't just tech, Aunt Cass."

"I know," she nodded, saying gently. "He's a part of our family. But I know Hasaki Hamada and he abhors going against tradition. So... it's probably not a good idea."

Hiro shrugged. "I did say I would go back."

"Well..." GoGo looked out with dismay at her two brawling cousins.

"If Max's not let in, I'm not goin' in," Wasabi said as the robot went out to reason.

"Yep, and if Wasabi's not in, I'm not in."

"And if Freddie isn't..."

"Team, it's not like Baymax isn't jam-packed with all manner of martials arts..."

They all looked at an unsure Hiro. Aunt Cass looked up with hope... and yet with a strange hope that Hiro would want to see his uncle again. She clutched the platter.

"I talked to Baymax about it." He looked at them all. "As long as it doesn't get in the way of college and herowork, I'll go back. And... no room for probotting Leiko."

GoGo folded her arms. "Permit me to 'Ha.'"

Hiro turned quizzically to the two men Baymax had calmed down.

"I think you should keep seeing your uncle, Hiro." Aunt Cass approached him.

"Really? Baymax is still coming with me, but inside the dojo... I mean, I don't..."

She held his shoulders. "If you want to learn what he has to teach, then _go for it_."

The teen smiled and hugged her. She wrapped her arms tightly around her son and touched her chin to the top of his head, eyes closed. "You're my little man, Hiroto."

"And you're my Auntie Cassie, Aunt Cass." He laughed.

Meanwhile, the team undid the probotter's finger traps and the two fled.

 **III**.

"Hasaki!" Cassandra called as she stumbled about through the firey ruins of the big railcar graveyard. It hadn't helped matters much with the oil she kept slipping on...

Both for her trek or helping her mentally.

She had slipped and fallen many times running and phoning for help. Her tattered clothes were genuinely tattered now and her grungy hair was no longer an amatuer attempt at being unkempt. Cassie started to sob, but it was quiet and tearless. She finally reached the area where it was hottest. Fire rose bright and glowing; it being what ironically had lit her way. She was almost to a tilted railcar when a dark figure tinted in an orange aura appeared at the top. Cass stopped, agape, as the battered Hasaki Hamada pulled two motionless figures along with him. She touched her lips.

"Help!" He cried down to her.

She shook her head wildly, wide-eyed.

"Don't you want to save your sister? HELP!"

Cassandra stepped away, refusing to look at the unmoving forms in his arms.

Men suddenly stormed past her and climbed up toward the weakening Hasaki.

"I-I have to go back for the others..." He coughed as he was relieved of his burden.

"Are they...?" A fireman started to ask.

"Heat exhaustion," Hasaki coughed. He started to go back down the railcar.

"Son, you need to come with-,"

"I have to go back there."

Three grown men pulled him down.

"No! NO! There are other people in there! They're defenseless. They- they're-,"

The fire department dragged him back. He fought and some of the stronger firemen had to overcome him. Cassandra trembled as watched her sister and Taku lying on the muddy, oily ground. More firemen came and helped her back. They drilled her. Was she okay? It was only when she saw ChiChi and Taku being tended to did she respond. When her frightened eyes switched back Hasaki was glaring accusingly at her. Someone else then touched her shoulder and she looked up to see who it was.

"I'm Shou," A young, short man with rounded features said. His eyes were a gentle sepia. "I followed my two brothers down here. Do you require a cellular phone, nǚ?"

...

Hua didn't look up from the maxium security door that opened. He clutched at his head as the guilt ate him alive. Maybe... maybe he could try to redeem what was left of his life. Without a family, maybe he could do good. He could start life over.

Maybe be a hero, even.

The man peered up the length of his shadowy isolation.

Or maybe he could just keep cursing himself; No one would ever believe him.

No one would ever give him a second chance, especially not the "heroes".

"Líkāi wǒ shòukǔ." He said to whoever was there.

"Suffer? Not yet."

Hua turned in bewilderment and shock to see his uncle in the palms of his top spy's hands... in phone form, of course. The man could not believe his russet-hued eyes.

"I'm here to offer you your second chance," said the black-blazer, chrome silver-shirted man. Shou Yu didn't mince words. "Bring me Hiroto and you are forgiven."

"My father...?"

"Has made his choice."

Hua considered.

"Do you want your freedom or not?" The anger was clear in his uncle's voice.

His nephew then made his choice.

"I will serve you," he stood and bowed.

The man knew who his real father was.

To be continued...


	6. Twists and turns

**"The Bluebird of Happiness" by George J Carroll**

 _"And in the valley beneath the mountains of my youth, lies the river of my tears._  
 _As it wends its way to the ocean of my dreams, so long ago they have gone._  
 _And yet, if I were but to think anew, would these dreams evaporate in my mind and become the morning dew upon a supple rose whose beauty is enhanced with these glistening drops, as the sun of life peeks o'er the mountains when youth was full._

 **I.**

 _The 5th day..._

Hiro awoke to an unusually warm spring day. He looked down at the red charger and smiled. This was the norm now. His eyes wouldn't stray to the divider but straight to Baymax himself. Who knows? He thought as he got up. Maybe they'd move out soon.

This thought only slightly unsettled the fourteen-year-old as he grabbed his sandals (he didn't need shoes inside the dojo anyways), pulled on the tan robe and belt his "sifu" had given him and came to stand in front of Baymax's motionless sleep form.

He sighed quietly, remembering when he had worked so hard to rebuild him; To make him just like Tadashi. Hiro was thoughtful. _Just like Tadashi._ "But you're not..." he fell to his knees and kissed the outside of Baymax's charger port. "You're my Maxie Moo."

Satisfied, he wrote a quick note and placed it on his best friend's head.

Baymax powered up slowly as Hiro headed out to his uncle's. As the robot rose with no sound to awaken him other then Hiro's leaving, he saw the note fall to the ground:

'Maxie, gone to Uncle H's. Text or call his main office at the Yu-Hamada Temple if you need me for a mission. Also, please don't send anything too personal. U never know.'

The now-inflated Baymax looked down at his chest and tried.

All he got was a busy signal... that, or he was being blocked.

...

"Bye Aunt Cass!" Hiro bolted towards the front door.

"Wǒ huìjiàn nǐ de." She said without looking up, sliding up a tray of baked goods into the glass counter. When her nephew stopped and looked back at her, she nodded at him with a smile. Hiro's eyes brightened a bit before he grinned and left for training.

A few moments later Aunt Cass's first customer in days came in.

 _She_ really brightened at this. "WELCOME to the Lucky Cat..."

"Miss Hamada?"

"Um... Yuri." Though Cassandra had gone by Yuri-Hamada at times.

"Oh!" A woman in a trench coat, flowered bandana and sunglasses started to back up.

"Oh, nononono. By all means, call my Cass. Cass Hamada. I'm sorry, I go by both."

Cassandra grabbed onto the woman's wrist and pulled her into the café.

"Miss Cass, then," she flashed a set of perfect teeth, "I am Diane Yu, the therapist of your nephew." A small throb from her ankle monitor/shock collar both warned and informed her that her brother was on the roof. "I came by to check on his progress."

"Oh, um..."

"I have money." She said flatly, holding up yin.

Another throb; this time from agitation.

"Oh, well... okay." Cassandra really couldn't turn down any livelihood right now. "Oh!Y- _You're_ Diane Yu? Oh, please, sit down. Sit down. I can't wait to tell you all about it."

"All about what?" Dian asked flatly again, digging in her purse for her red lipstick.

"Um..." The older woman stopped, clasping two coffees. "Hiro's progress?"

"Huh? OH! Right, right. The Hamada boy's." She clenched her teeth a little when she had to seat herself, having grown up with servants and chaperons. "Is he still asleep?"

"Oh, no. He just left," Cassandra beamed. "I can't wait to tell you all about his health."

Dian's eyes grew behind her sunglasses; she'd expected an angsty boy locked in his...

"Can I take your coat?" Her host asked worriedly.

"Hello, I am Baymax." A fairly familiar white robot waddled up to them.

Dian blinked in shock, even though the sunglasses prevented him from scanning her.

"Baymax, this is Diane Y-,"

"Yutama..." She said quickly, laughing nervously. "But go on. Go on!"

Cassandra stared a moment, then chuckled nervously too.

"Riiiiight. She's Hiro's Child Psychologist, Baymax. From the back of that phone book."

"I am Hiro's healthcare companion and best friend."

"Well..." Dian's ankle buzzed in shockless irritation. "If Hiro's not home right now, I-,"

"Before you depart, I believe it is beneficial for us to discuss all potential concerns in allowing a burgeoning adolescent to partake in frequent, physical activites such as-,"

Dian's head flopped backwards in a soft groan.

 **II**.

"Today I thought we'd work on your resistance training."

"Heh, who could resist me?" Hiro joked as he and his uncle walked down a hall.

Hasaki gave his nephew a careful smile.

This made him more curious. "Why so formal? Uh... Uncle Sensei. Heh. Sifu Hasaki."

They walked into an inclosed glass structure from inside Hasaki's dojo sanctuary and came under a metal-covered ceiling. The man led his pupil across the grass and over to one of the glass tubules. He connected his robed arms together and turned to Hiro.

"Nephew, can I ask you something?"

Hiro nodded, brought of his reverie.

"Why do you think you're so... stressed? Uncertain?"

His student considered this.

"Overwhelmed?" Hasaki offered.

Hiro's eyes widened. "I'm not overwhelmed."

"Are you lying?"

"No!" The teen blurted out. Hasaki raised a brow. "Uh... Sifu Hasaki." Hiro bowed.

"This training should cover it then," he swiped a long wick from his sleeve.

"You're gonna burn yourself." Hiro warned incredulously.

"Not a moment too soon." Hasaki said as he lit the firework. The projectile shot up like the rocket it was and Hiro suddenly gasped as the enclosure rumbled, the grassy floor hit his palms and the two of them jettisoned up to the very top of the huge mountain.

"Uncle Hassssakkiiii!" Hiro watched with amazement as students and teachers blurred.

"Hahaha! Why so formal!?" He called out as the pair came to a sudden but stable stop.

The man then moved aside, indicating upwards. Hiro gaped as the metal ceiling began to recede up into itself like a paneled umbrella. He tried to speak in his amazement as the beautiful, azure sky was revealed in the mountains, rimmed by clouds so closeby.

"I... I..."

"What'd we do in a current, Hiro?" His uncle Hasaki shrugged in mock bewilderment before snapping out his of beige and maroon robe to reveal a tailored wet suit. Hasaki gave one final shrug before he flung himself down a big, clear tube. Hiro then flew into a panic. _Baymax!_ But Baymax was at home. _Tea-,_ They were all at home, still asleep.

Just from the rim, the teen spotted water sliding down from an unseen channel.

Hiro stepped forward nervously, rubbed his hands together and flung himself down the tube robe-in-all. He went fast, faster, zipping about rapidly here and there. Hiro didn't scream but tried to grab onto something. His robe ripped away from him in his frantic, futile attempts to fight the water. Finally, in nothing but a T-shirt and cargo pants, he was deposited with a big sweep into the air. Hiro was in shock as he landed back first.

His chest rose up and down, he gasped. He... he...

"Relax, Hiroto."

Hiro gasped and looked up overhead. His uncle was peacefully drifting down a smooth current that outstretched, Hiro saw in disbelief, into a huge, verdant valley. Glass and arched wooden support beam buildings were constructed at a distance from them into winding trees, rocks and the occasional mountain base. Hiro's head revolved in a slow spin. He had questions, he craved answers. His father... did _his_ father... did Tadashi?

The sun hit him and he looked up in surprise at it's warmth.

He thought of Baymax. Hiro took a deep breath, smiled, then closed his eyes.

"Rock." Hasaki said.

"WAH!" He floundered around and looked up.

"Hehe, no. If it _was_ there you'd have felt a resistance in the current, however slight."

Hiro grimaced at him, then went back to letting the current carry him.

Uncle Hasaki didn't say anymore. The two floated down the clear river together. Here and there lily pads and lotus blooms dotted the water. Hiro started to really breathe in early summer's warmth as he and the cool water seemed to become one. He exhaled.

Smiled.

"I don't _ever_ wanna go back."

Hasaki's eyes popped open and he looked down in surprise at his nephew.

His brows lowered in memory but he still allowed himself to be carried away.

...

Aunt Cass had gone about making print-outs for Dian(e)'s medical file for herself when suddenly the younger woman saw her chance. She looked this way and that to make absolutely sure no one else was in the café when a softness touched her trailing hand.

The woman looked up in panic behind her sunglasses when two, true dark eyes looked down at her... but there was no true darkness in them. "If you ever require help..." he had placed something in her suddenly untensed palm. "I will be there ready to assist."

"Ah...ah..." Dian couldn't quite form words.

"We will not allow harm to come to you."

She clutched the obvious communicator close to her chest. Baymax stepped back.

Her eyes stung and she wondered why the transmitter on her ankle didn't buzz. In a frenzy of fear, uncertainty and the brief stirrings of unwanted hope and betrayal, Dian broke free of her own mental trap and made way for the cafe's door. He watched this.

Baymax watched and hoped she would return.

...

Hiro forgot where he was... his mind, always at work and always wrapped around the obsession for new ideas, was completely clear for once. Clear, not focused... open, not empty of ideas. He was almost sure he had never been this way when his uncle called.

"Yeah, Sensai?" Or sifu. Whatever he wanted to be-,

"HIRO LOOK OUT!"

Hiro yelped and twisted around to find the tide had picked up. Though it was still nice and sunny, rocks were coming up fast. He tried, fought, struggled. "Uncle... UNCLE!"

"Hiroto, don't fight it, move with..."

His mind snapped to a memory and he recalled Tadashi making him shout this.

Tadashi wasn't... no, _he-!_

Something snatched Hiro by the arm and pulled him away from the rapidly incoming stone. Someone's firm grip shielded him for a brief moment and then suddenly Hiro was dancing. Almost literally... _dancing_ to a whooshing, mute rhythm. He gasped and tried to focus, think, decide as his body cartwheeled and swept about to some unseen force. The rocks would come, he would think, tense, then be whisked away at the last moment. It wasn't until, breathing hard and fast, Hiro found himself back in the calm water as before. He shook his head, hair dripping in his face, and looked to the bank.

Uncle Hasaki had climbed up a water-darkened, wooden ladder and was sitting out under a patch of sun. He motioned for Hiro to join him. Confused, but more then a little ready to get out, Hiro swam over to the ladder and climbed up to join his uncle.

The man was silent, looking down at an old but chipless tea set.

Hiro sat like him and stared. "Uh...?"

Hasaki grinned under his brow.

"Oh! Oh. Oh Oh..." Hiro scrambled for the tea set.

"Hiroto."

"I know. I know. I'm sorry..."

"Tea?" A pretty Chinese girl in traditional robes came over offering tea.

"Thank you, Meikomo."

Hiro stared.

"Mmm-mmm."

Hiro turned back to Hasaki.

"We'll get to know my daughter-in-law in a while, when your Maxie comes to get you."

His nephew flushed a little and Meikomo winked at her father-in-law with a smile.

Hiro waited for Hasaki to pick his tea up and they raised their cups to each other.

"So... you're wondering how all this came to be?"

The speed with which Hiro nodded seemed at odds with his thin neck.

Hasaki sipped his tea meditatively, eyes on Hiro. He breathed in the sweet and bitter cranberry ginger-root, then exhaled steadily at his pupil's anxiety and he started from a different yet still intriguing topic. "Would you like to know why I'm here suddenly in your life again?" he watched carefully. Hiro calmed, then tensed. "How I know you're a fourteen-year-old superhero flying around the city? How I knew to come help you all?"

Hiro nodded slowly at all these suddenly very need-to-know questions.

His uncle sighed again and looked down, setting his tea aside:

"I knew you had a flying robot when you flew by and shrugged at me in the subway."

To be continued...


	7. Where loyalities lie

**I.** \- _San Fransoyko Bay..._

The clouds had moved in from the mountains over an otherwise fogless day as a fish-and-packaging truck sped away from the dock. Inside a man was humming along to the music in his earbuds when something large flew overhead. He blinked in surprise and then looked out his driver's window with a "Hmm?" Then shrugged with another, "Hmm." Something flashed past his passenger side like wind. "HUH?"

...

Further up along the way someone was pacing along the dock, debating. Wasabi let himself catch his breath, heavily and rapidly, before he lay squarely in the middle of the road. He pressed down on his earpiece. "And we're sure Hiro can't help us out?"

Baymax's assuring voice didn't reassure him. "I was unable to tap into and reach a main number at the Temple nor intercept it's satellite feed. However, I can read his neurotransmitter levels from this range and Hiro is being safeguarded." He paused.

"Bay?"

"Yes, we are at the bay." Baymax paused again. "Oh. You were referring to me?"

"Yeah," the man trembled out. "Um..."

"Your anxiety is spiking." his friend said helpfully. "Do you require my assistance?"

"No. No, I agreed to take this post. You watch out for the little guys." He almost let himself grin at that; Honey had insisted on giving GoGo's cousins another shot. The green-suited hero took a deep breath, took off his gloves to quickly apply a dab of lime and citrus hand sanitizer, then slipped them back on and readied himself now.

...

GoGo slammed the last of her wheels down and Honey "coated" them in chem.

The Korean girl brushed her hands together. "That should do it," she stated.

"Bueno," Honey Lemon agreed. "And thank you, for giving your cousins another chance." she smiled. GoGo shrugged. "Really, Lei. Everyone deserves one, right?"

"Or ten or twelve," the girl muttered, observing Fred and her idiot relatives.

...

"OK," Fred placed his claws on the shaking twins' arms. "It's simple. You just use your retro-fitted robot parts suits and take the left side of the truck on my signal."

"But GoGo said-,"

"GoGo and Honey did their parts, now it's up to us!" He grinned and pushed their helmets down. They both wore outfits made from different robot parts GoGo and Wasabi had assembled quickly. Though without any real powers, they did have the added speed and some extra strength to help. "I'll be over there, just wait for this."

Fred held up his claw points and then pointed inward.

"All eyes on you?"

"No, get this right or I'm putting Chinese finger traps on you again!" Giving them a promising wink, Fred yanked his head down and leapt over to the other road's side.

 **II**.

"I joined your brother when I finished with my language studies, later in the year '83," Hasaki was telling his nephew over tea. A red-crowned crane moved along a nearby pond, the lilypads swirling around it's legs as it looked for fish to snatch up.

"When did you guys...I don't know," Hiro rubbed at his neck.

"Stop hanging out?" Hasaki offered, looking down at his tea. He inhaled the scent in a deep breath and released it only into his cup. When Hiro saw he wasn't going to get an answer, he looked down at his own. The man laughed once into his. "Taku," he wiped at his mouth. "He wasn't one for tradition. I mean, you'd think... with all you've seen about me, you'd think _I'd_ be the obnoxious little brother who never..."

He stopped and thought. Hiro looked up hopefully.

"No," Hasaki decided, slowly rising to his feet. "No, this isn't right."

"What isn't...? Uh, Sifu Hasaki." Hiro nervously scrambled up to his feet, too.

"It isn't right for you not to know." His uncle came over and settled a hand on his nephew's shoulder. "Hiro, your parents..." the boy blinked. Hasaki steadied himself as he said. "They loved you very much. I remember getting e-mails from Taku," he grinned inspite of himself. "Even though _he_ set up the account and I didn't bother."

"Are my parents alive?" Hiro looked out at the crane. A small, reddish-brown furred creature climbed down a tree. Hiroto worked up the nerve and met his uncle's eyes.

Hasaki made sure that they were on equal footing... level ground, then said, "No."

Hiro nodded to himself slowly.

"We're they..." he felt his face go cold and pale. "How did they die?"

The man picked up his kettle by the handle and poured more tea, not bothering to call his daughter-in-law back though it was all about 'tradition'. "That's enough for today," he said. Hiro shot a look at him, ready to argue. "That's enough for today, Hiroto." His sifu informed him. "I will continue your tutelage, but this topic is over."

"But we're just talking," Hiro reasoned. "I thought you said-,"

"This subject is closed."

" _You. said._ -"

"Are you questioning me?" He didn't look up.

"Depends, what aren't you telling me?" Hiro said suspiciously.

His uncle looked away with a grunt.

"You. said.," He started again with the same calm force his uncle used. "That it isn't right for me not to know. And obviously, someone's not been telling me the truth."

Hasaki looked Hiro straight in the eyes, even though he was squatting and Hiro was standing. "Hiroto, do not disrespect me again. I told you what is expected of you in this temple." Hiro's eyes widened in disbelief. "Most others would tell you the same, and most would have kicked you out by now for sheer intent to disobey their rules."

His nephew squared his shoulders.

"I see." Hasaki looked down. "You are dismissed."

"Fine," Hiro turned on his heel and left.

He stopped when he realized that the wind was picking up, that it was cool and that the mountain was a good walk upriver. Hiro was mumbling to himself about how he didn't even have his headset for instant communication when something wooly and warm was draped over his shoulders. He perked up when he thought it was his big, loveable robot friend but then was dragged down by it. This thing was heavy and... and itchy! Hiro turned to Hasaki who looked like he hadn't moved, his back to him.

"Bye, Uncle Hasaki," he started to walk away.

"Same time tomorrow, Hiroto."

Angered, Hiro charged forward and stumbled over a foot trail of varying rocks he hadn't noticed before. He was about to fall face first when a hand seized his wrist. The boy gasped and looked up. Hasaki indicated the spaces in between the rocks.

"Look at what you must do, Hiro. You can't _fight_ the rocks, you can't run and hide."

"A new angle." He stepped up on them.

"No!" Hasaki held him back, saying acutely. "Don't _think_ , just _do_."

"So, okay, there's footholes." He tried standing between them.

"You have to keep moving, Hiro."

"I'm tired!" The teen griped.

"I was too," Hasaki's voice was loud but only with instruction. He closed his eyes, glasped his hands behind his back and let himself step back without one look. His steps sent him pinwheeling a bit but he never stumbled, he never fell, he _walked. backwards._ Hiro couldn't believe what he was seeing. There was no technology he was using. No tricks. It didn't matter the size or shape, Hasaki completed his stride.

Finally, he arrived back in front of Hiro.

Clouds were fringing them perfectly as the wind blew them in a strange emcompass directly over the verdant valley. Hiro and Hasaki stood looking at each other. More questions swam in Hiro's eyes, reflecting the edges of the clouds. Hasaki saw all of this play out with a bittersweet silence. The man nodded slightly as he understood.

But he offered no new answers.

"It's past five," Hasaki indicated the sun, "And you start back to school tomorrow."

Hiro nodded.

"So I expect you here at 5 AM. You can leave at seven after you've cleaned up."

"Huh?"

"The dojo." Hasaki informed him. "For disobedience. Now, you've been here much too long." he turned back to the tree. "I'm going to put this up, run along Hiroto."

Hiro was practically quivering with cold and unexpected hostility as he stalked off around the rock trail. He was surprised; until today he hadn't felt anything but awe and a strange curiosity about his uncle. Now, Hiro only wanted to see one person...

Well, mostly person.

 **III**.

The driver was nearing the corner to the main road when he felt his truck jerk to a stop. He saw the glass coming when something heavy touched down on the roof of his cab, ripped open said roof with a metallic screech and planted itself, big, fluffed and white, between him and going out the window; it was almost a blur as it were.

His wheels were caught and locked in what looked to be traffic boots. Traffic boots, he saw, that instantly locked when you drove through them and were stronger then concrete. The white creature cradling him eased his nerves a little until he observed a strange girl in yellow clicking them onto her wrists and ankles. It was even more terrifying when the big, puffy dubai released and surrendered him to a scaly lizard.

Even if he _was_ in Japanese-influenced America, this couldn't be happening!

He was then outfitted in a Chinese fingertrap.

...

"Look at these," Honey Lemon said as she and GoGo cranked back the door to the delivery truck. Baymax, Wasabi and Fred, towing his load along, came up to them.

"Yeah, slimey fish fins." Wasabi complained, disinfecting his hands again.

"Wasabi?" Baymax held up a finger.

"Ah, yeah, let me get some of that!" He cupped his hands gratefully.

"Shark fins," GoGo said solemnly. "For soup."

"Who's your vendor?!" Fred pulled him up close to his face.

Wasabi sighed. "Fred, that's for the _police_ to ask."

"But a good question, nonetheless." Honey Lemon noted as she reached down.

"I would not touch raw fish without proper glove wear, Honey Lemon." Baymax said when a health chart flickered on his stomach. "Hiro," he said, then looked to where his suit had been discarded. The team looked at each other. GoGo chuckled a little,

"I guess we'll get our little man back someday."

The truck suddenly started up and sped off, somehow breaking the hardened chem.

"Whoa!" Fred shouted. "Hey, GET BACK HERE!"

"I'm right here," the driver muttered.

"Oh."

"My cousins," GoGo realized.

"That was our truck!" Honey said, in reference to what they were really after.

Baymax turned like he was still wearing his suit. "I will assist-,"

"No," Wasabi touched his shoulder. "We'll take care of whatever this is, you go and take care of Hiro," he smiled and patted his arm trustingly. The man then took off.

...

A figure peeked out from behind an empty market aisle and watched the big, white creature suit himself. Her black hair spilled to one side as she waited, knowing what her mission was... knowing what she really wanted; her father. Dian bit down hard on her finger and saw Baymax pause, waiting too. Her auburn eyes brimmed with tears as she fought with herself. She could risk asking for help, but her uncle would kill her. Dian lifted her arm, ready to give the signal for Hua to launch a device that would latch and track. Wherever Dubai would go is where young Hiro would be, and with the parts for her uncles plans-, Her ankle buzzed. She had to make a decision.

...

"Are you _sure_ that e-mail was from Hasaki Hamada?"

"Well, it said Hasaki Yu, but...?" Ha-Jun looked helplessly down at his phone as he tried to pioneer the getaway; if the family found out he'd been outdriven by Leiko...

"But WHAT?" Ji-Min wasn't quiet for once.

"But I suddenly don't think 30 grand was worth it!"

Glass shattered and Ha-Jun was seized up to his cousin's face. "You got that right."

"Please, don't tell our mom," he begged. Ji-Min got control of the truck and didn't make any attempt to fight when Honey Lemon - the one who'd stuck up for them even after their disasterous first mission - slipped in and glared at him to pull over.

A malachite stalactite ripped through the dent Baymax had made and Fred seized the two as the truck barreled right for the end of the cement bordering the pier. It was with reluctance that Big Hero "6" abandoned their mission to get the two boys to safety. GoGo was muttering how this wouldn't have happened if Hiro was there.

"He's still training... reciporating," Honey told her.

"He _said_ he'd be here if we needed him."

Wasabi and Fred made sure that Ha-Jun, Ji-Min and the driver didn't get away.

" _What. exactly._ were you two thinking?" GoGo was fierce with exasperation.

The two looked at each other, wondering where to begin.

"I think they were trying to help smuggle illegal bot parts," Honey held up a silver object she had snatched from the fish fins despite Baymax's warning. It was a _very_ familiar silver band, "It's a... neural transmitter." she spun it slowly in her fingers.

Wasabi blanched. "But they're outlawed."

The mask. Callaghan...

Suddenly this little getaway wasn't humorous anymore.

Fred preformed a three-way finger-trap as GoGo bent down with a leer.

"We're turning you over to the police. But before that, where were you taking this and _who_ is your dealer?" She lowered her brows as they hesistated, then debated.

Honey Lemon sighed and walked over. "We're trying to protect people we love."

They softened at her and then proceeded to tell her everything.

GoGo wrinkled her nose in disgust and stalked away.

...

Dian knew the consequences; she only feared never seeing her father again.

Baymax's white head shifted as she ran out and did a full-tilted tumble towards the robot. A flash of light reflected off the afternoon sun as Hua swore loudly in Chinese and launched the tracker anyways. Baymax turned towards the device and lifted his balled-up hand that now sported the rocket fist; it was an easy target. Dian let out a scream that eclipsed her brother's cursing easily. Baymax paused from launching.

Dian knew that her pain would come last, the mission would come-,

Something soft but firm caught her ankle and with gentle precision broke the very thing that had ruled her life for fourteen years off. She sat, still half-coiled in a ball of agony, as the scraps of metal fell uselessly around her ankle. Baymax looked up at her, she met his eyes like she barely understood what he'd done for her. Yes, it was with money, luxury, a wonderful education, a great life... but she had only very rarely seen her family, even her brother. It had always been with threats from her uncle since she was 10 that kept her in line. Now Dian Yu was homeless, and free.

The scanner landed squarely on the back of Baymax and the girl took off towards the café to find and warn her father. Hua made it to where Baymax was trying in desperation to get the device off his back. Under his mask, the man's eyes slitted.

He walked over and jerked the robot roughly up to his face. Hua touched his hip.

"Call The Lucky Cat Café, robot." His voice was distorted, "Tell his aunt, if Hiro ever wants to see you or his brother's pathetic chip again, he will hand himself over to-,"

"On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate your level of pain?"

" _Huh?!_ "

"I believe you may require my assistance with removing your binds."

"You... you _tell Taku's son!_ "

"Is that a no?" Baymax asked matter-of-factly.

"N- _Yes!_ "

"Then I will require you to hold this."

Hua, blinking under his carbon-fiber mask, turned to Baymax's fist.

"In order to evade you, I must present you with this falsehood."

The man seethed and threw out his hands to throttle Baymax. He clasped onto the rocket fist Baymax centered to block him and was ripped out across the ocean. The robot circle-waved innocently as Hua Yu was sent hurtling away, topping 300 MPH.

...

"Betrayal..." Yu breathed into his tea. "And they came so _highly_ recommended." he mocked. Tisha Yu came over and sat directly before he brother-in-law. Shou looked at her with pleased eyes; she was a tall, sharp woman who was quiet and demure.

Not beautiful, but she never spoke out of turn.

"It seems your daughter has left us," he raised a brow. "Your husband. Even your son is teetering on my bad side." The man looked up at a wall in the inner room of his hidden compound. "My mother... father... Taku's father..." a smile began to hint itself on his round lips. "Taku himself. They all have one thing in common, my Qīn."

The woman blinked emotionlessly. "They were all executed."

He turned his chair to her, then released his breath. "Yes... and I do not believe it has to be the same with your family if you will tell me how to access _my_ family's Temple." Yu almost added "my nephew" but he didn't. He waited for her answer.

Tisha Yu-Hamada had nothing left to live for:

"I don't know what it is, you haven't let me talk to my husband in ten years."

He clenched his chair's arm and dismissed her, eyeing his lunch.

Once she was gone Shou Yu picked up his bowl of fin soup and turned back around:

"So I haven't." He picked up his chopsticks and noisily slurped up his food.

To be continued...


	8. All else above self

**I.**

"So let me get this straight," Officer Gerson said as he took down statements from Big Hero 6, "The reason dark, shaggy-haired kid and balloon man aren't with you is because the first one has to reconnect with his long-lost uncle in a secluded temple somewhere in the mountains and the latter is performing a welfare check on him."

GoGo looked at him skeptically. "Wha... what does that have to do with anything?!"

"Well, eh..."

She let out a groan. "We'll pass along that you want to see them again."

"Any idea if Yu is behind this?" Wasabi entreated. The officer raised a brow.

"You got anymore of an idea with all the hi-tech and money at your disposal?"

The two heroes looked at each other.

...

"I can't believe we trusted you!" Honey Lemon scolded GoGo's cousins.

The moping pair hung their heads, "Sorry." They moaned.

Fred scoffed and shook his head, claws on hips. " _Men_ , what are we even good for?"

"Sorry."

Their mopiness changed to terror when GoGo stalked up to them.

It was getting late and they needed to get home. "Listen," she grabbed them both by their shirts and pulled them up to her face. "The cops might have let you go, but I'm..." She sighed when Fred said her name. They were shocked when she stopped.

"GoGo?" Wasabi said in hesistation.

"You don't understand what Hiro went through," she told her cousins. "You don't... " She sighed. "I'm not going to tell your parents. I'm not letting anyone know about this." They brightened at each other. " _But_ ," she conditioned, pointing in their awed faces. "It's imperative you tell us who those neural transmitters were for and why."

Ha-Jun shot Ji-Mun a horrified look.

True terror.

"We can't," The quieter one admitted fearfully. "We'll be... we'll be killed."

Wasabi squatted to their level. "We're not gonna let anything happen to you."

If GoGo being reasonable floored them, Wasabi's gentleness had them reeling.

"We... ahh. We can't!" Ha-Jun explained.

"You don't understand. GoGo, our family is at risk. Our parents, siblings, all of us!"

Honey joined them. "We will protect your family." she reassured them.

Fred hugged the girls close to his sides. "Please, we already lost a close friend. We don't wanna lose anyone else," he borrowed Honey's phone and selected a photo of Hiro and Tadashi, then showed the two. "Hiro's been brotherless for seven months now. That's why this is so important. Can even you _imagine_ life without the other?"

GoGo gave his cheek a quick peck even before the brothers nodded in cooperation.

 **II**.

Hiro ripped his tan sash from his robe as he stalked up to the wooden door. He was past remembering the ridiculous way his uncle got it open and merely pounded with both his fists. A picture of Baymax breaking down a wall came to him and he kicked it. "OW!" He grasped his foot and then whirled on his good one to fall into a sit. The result should have been a soft, whirring noise and then a tubby tummy in his face.

The teen almost laughed. He clasped his arms and looked around to see no one.

"Baymax!" Hiro called. Then he remembered how he had almost distanced himself from his buddy, how Baymax had almost given up being a healthcare companion... how it was Hiro's fault. The teen placed his face into his hands. Baymax had almost given up on him. No... no he hadn't! Hiro had almost given up on _him_. But now he-,

A pair of familiar hands took Hiro under his arms and brought him in for a hug.

...

"Have you ever met anyone so stubborn?!" Hasaki ranted ineffectively from within the underground tech bunker of the temple. Meikomo filed her long, smooth nails in poised study, not ignoring but not interfering. "It's... tech this! And knowledge that! The boy goes on and on, babbling about the most presumptuous things until I could just... Just like..." He sensed the girl look up and knew she was wondering who he meant; His brother, Hua, or... "Please pull up a screen on Hiroto, then let him in."

She smiled a little and tapped on the massive panel at her disposal.

"You're supposed to mention how hypocritical I am with my security lab." He said.

An image of Baymax and Hiro hugging had Hasaki stepping back, observing Hiroto seeking comfort from, what else, technology. The big, soft robot smooshed the boy close to his belly and said boy squeezed him as close as was physically permittable.

"No," Hasaki said firmly. "Hiro has got to learn to move past this, to get on with life on his own. He _has_ to grow up, Mei." The man pointed for emphasis before stalking up to the door himself to go and tell Hiro what he thought. It was then Hiro turned to the screen and Hasaki stopped at the smile on the boy's face. _Happy_. He was not even close to aware that someone was coming up to tell him to grow up. To let go.

The man's brows rose and his gold-brown eyes lightened. Someone took hold of his arm and jumped up and down, giggling delightedly as she bounced at this outcome.

Hasaki gave Meikomo a withering look.

She grinned. "I'll... just be over here," Mei excused herself.

Her father-in-law then turned to watch Hiro and Baymax, he almost couldn't believe what he was seeing but there it was. He started to think, remember, and this made him consider something. Hasaki looked over to Meikomo as she pulled a small baby out of his crib next to her, cooing at the toothless infant that grinned up at her. He beamed at his mother and then looked down curiously when she poked at her belly.

"Who's in there? Who's in there?" Mei poked his forehead, grinning. "Who's in your head? Who's in there?" The baby giggled as his mother kissed and tickled him. She clasped her young son to her and looked at Hasaki with a smile. "Who's that, Little Huan? Little Huan." Meikomo asked, cooing. "Is that Grandpa? Is that Grandpa...?"

He looked at his family uncertainly and his daughter-in-law looked back hopefully.

...

"Thanks, buddy. I needed that." Hiro smiled and looked up at his best friend.

"On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate your level of pain?"

"Hehe. Zero."

"Hiro, you were in distress," Baymax said as he lowered him down.

"Just... getting over some family drama with my uncle," The teen shrugged. "So," he poked the bot's belly. "No armor? Did nothing interesting happen today, Maxie?"

"We intercepted a shipment of illegally imported ichthyoid, were betrayed by Ji-Min and Ha-Jun, I convinced a young spy operative to not give up on herself by freeing her, averted an attack by her brother and disabled a humerus-embedded tracker."

Hiro blinked, trying to make sense of all this.

"You weren't able to leave a message with Meikomo? There's a control lab here."

"All signals are either being blocked or re-located."

"Is this anything I should worry about?" Hiro asked skeptically.

Baymax hugged him again and the teen trusted him. "I will protect your mind and body," he promised. Hiro and he looked up when Hasaki and Meikomo walked out.

"You'll catch your death," she hurried to offer him a flowery, white kimono. It was when her hand made contact with Baymax's warmth that she gasped. "Oh! Dabai."

 _'Dabai?'_

Funny how Hiro had just been to China only to find he, himself, was part-Chinese.

Right.

"Uncle...?" he turned to Hasaki with a raised brow.

The man pretended to not hear him and took unusual interest in Baymax,

"So if Hiro picks school back up tomorrow, where does that leave you?"

"I ordinarily provide medical assistance at the campus hospital in Hiro's absence."

"I couldn't imagine going back to school now," Meikomo stepped back and revealed a swaddled bundle close to her chest. Hiro's eyes lit up as Baymax cocked his head.

"Oh, wow."

Hasaki cleared his throat impatiently and the teen stepped back, grinning.

Baymax was still looking intently at the baby and Hiro was really grinning now.

"This is... this is probably right up your alley, buddy. Becoming an OB nurse bot."

"Well..." Meikomo smiled sheepishly as Hasaki crossed his arms.

"Wait, you said you're not in school?" Hiro lowered his brows. "How old are you?"

Before he could really get on his uncle's nerves, Meikomo brought Little Huan away from her own kimono and offered to let Baymax hold him. Hiro met Hasaki's eyes in apprehension, but the man merely dropped his arms and offered a tentative smile.

"Cassandra tells me... Tadashi built him." He managed to converse awkwardly.

Ususally Baymax would follow up any origins story about himself with his protocol.

Hiro, Hasaki and Meikomo watched as the robot cradled the child to his chest. The baby boy opened his honey-colored eyes and blinked at the nurse bot. They gazed at each other a moment before Baymax held him close to his face and cuddled him.

The two teens sensed Hasaki tense up at this and turned to look at him. He stepped away and headed back inside, much too quickly for Hiro and Meikomo to follow. The two met each other's eyes with an understanding and Baymax finally looked up too.

"Is there an emergency of some sort?" He asked innocently.

"I'd better go check on him," Meikomo gently relieved Baymax of her son and gave the two an apologetic smile. "Please, don't take his behavior as rude. He's not used to the love and closeness of a real family. And please know it's only for security we don't let satellite feed through here." she turned just to Hiro. "We'll be seeing you."

The teen waved back at her with a small smile as she left.

"Her body is still developing."

"Uh-huh." Hiro said dazedly, then shook his head a little. "Max, I think it's best we just keep the personal stuff to a minimum. Let's get home and call it a day, okay?"

"I believe we should call it night, Hiro." Baymax indicated the presence of stars.

His friend's lip tugged up a little. "I think this calls for something else."

 **III.**

After a string of rambling, half-mumbled confessions, Honey followed GoGo to the fishing wharf while Fred and Wasabi dealt with Ha-Jun and Ji-Min. At first it seemed as though GoGo were deeply upset by this, but then the girl saw her friend hunting.

GoGo went about the moggy wharf in the new darkness, searching along it's length at a normal speed; making absolute sure not to miss anything. Honey Lemon gave a soft sigh and was able to help out when GoGo called for her. The girl ran over to her with ease further down the wharf and nearly stumbled over herself with a gasp.

"I know," Was the only thing her friend said.

There, lying on where cement met wooden planks, was the upper part of Baymax's suit. On the back of it was an embedded tracker. They looked away for a moment in grief, then GoGo turned and put on some white gloves. Honey grinned in spite of herself, thinking of Wasabi and his cleanliness phobias. GoGo didn't grin or smile as she traced along the evidence and asked Honey to contact the police for her. What her fingers told her confirmed it; the tracker had a neural receptor for mind control.

...

Hiro and Baymax sat together atop the Lucky Cat Café, watching the large spread of stars despite the glare of the city lights. Hiro had suggested downloading an app and hooking Baymax up as a high-power telescope, or even just use the basic one.

Baymax had declined. They watched the twinkling dots for a bit when Hiro sighed.

"I can't be selfless like you," He said from where they sat on a rice mat on the roof.

"Hiro?"

"Like you and the others. You make it look so easy while I fight every day to be."

"I do not understand why this would be a fight for you."

"Baymax, you don't even have to _think_ about it. You just are. While I'm... selfish."

"Hiro, you are not selfish for taking care of yourself."

This didn't satify him. "But Baymax, how can I be selfless if all I think about is me?"

The white robot blinked. "Do you know why you must be selfish sometimes?"

"Huh?!"

"So you provide yourself with adequate care. If you cannot care for yourself in the first place, you cannot care for others. I'm afraid I am not very good at analogies."

"But-,"

"Self without less is still less."

Hiro nodded slowly. "So in order for me to care like you, I should care about me?"

"In order for you to be healthy, you must allow yourself time to rest and heal."

The teen smiled at him and looked out at the stars again.

Baymax touched his shoulder. "Together."

There was a peace that befell them.

"OK, but, Baymax..."

"Yes, Hiro?"

"Tomorrow I'm going to have to make you a new suit so we can get around better."

To be continued...


	9. What remains unsaid

**I.**

There was a loud pounding on the glass door of the Lucky Cat Café, a hand beating louder on the glass then the pouring rain, that made Cassandra sit up in bed and check her clock. It must have been the first time in years she was even asleep at night. The woman simply pulled the pillow her _lăolao_ had made for her when she'd been a child over her head, pretending she didn't hear anything. The aroma of her incense was still there. Ginger, lemon... Chicken. It had been a favorite of Chihiro's.

Cassie smiled.

The bare-handed pounding got louder, insistent.

Her green eyes popped open and the woman hustled out of bed, nearly knocking Mochi out as well. She made sure to tread softly past Hiro's room, took the stairs two at a time, then unlocked and threw the front door open to reveal the solicitor.

Cassandra gasped in shock at the drenched, garbage bag-bundled form before her.

"Oh my word," the café owner got out, "Are you-?"

"It's me!" Diane Yu folded her "hood" back and stared at Cassandra in deperation.

"Oh, uh..."

"They did it!" She blubbered like a child. "My uncle, he did it... Hiro's, Hiro's uncle!"

"Did what?" Cassandra pulled her inside. "Honey, what's wrong?"

Liner and tears ran down her cold face as she stared up into the older woman's.

"I'm not a psychologist, I'm... I'm just looking for my father. I'm sorry, please, the robot offered it's help and your family... your beautiful family!" Dian cried hoarsely.

"What _about_ my family?" Cassandra lifted her chin, looking her firmly in the eye.

"My uncle killed them," She said with more control. "Hiro's uncle."

...

"So it's settled," Wasabi said as they sat in Honey's living room. The others nodded.

"We don't tell Hiro until he's older." The Latina girl added. "About his parents."

They had released the twins after the two confessed what had actually happened to Taku and Chihiro Hamada, and who was responsible. Fred tossed the fingertrap he had scored off the truck driver into a doily-lined trash can, no longer amused by it.

"Or Baymax," he finished. "Not for a while, anyways."

GoGo didn't say anything.

...

It had been early. And after flying over on Baymax, the robot had stayed with Mei.

Hiro watched his uncle poise himself in the water under the soft light of many paper laterns... lit by fireflies. "Even when I was a kid, my family had to consider some form of backlighting when we trained early in the morning before school." Now the man stood absolutely still in the water with Hiro watching when he suddenly turned.

"Oh," The boy remembered quietly, then closed his eyes to mimic his uncle.

"Don't copy me, Hiroto, don't even watch me," Hasaki said with a chuckle.

"But how-?"

"Just trust me."

They were both still in the water for a moment, then slowly, the two began to move with the sway of the gentle current. Hiro felt himself moving with little effort as it spread off in swirling, thin rivulets around him. His arms began to sweep with the threads that were re-directed to his feet. Hiro felt them wrap around his toes and in that way could actually feel the pebbles that he would otherwise step on. He did not acutally step on them as he moved with the rushing ribbons, and he grinned not at this... but at the image of the person he was moving with. Yes, Tadashi moved with him. Calm, proud... mirror-like. The teen's eyes opened and he was standing alone.

"Hiro."

He turned to see Hasaki looking at him, but definitely not _down_ at him.

Hiro grinned widely.

His uncle nodded confidently. "I think that's enough for today."

The teen bowed his head and Hasaki bowed back.

 _Clap_.

Hasaki's golden eyes widened over a mop of silver-tinted black hair before the man actually looked down to confirm whether Hiro had really came over and hugged him or not. The boy was smiling, eyes closed like when he'd hugged Baymax. Surprise somehow overrode Hasaki's normal evasive maneuver, so he merely stared. Hasaki didn't think it was normal for men to hug and he had to wonder if he looked as cold in this moment as he felt when Hiro finally pulled away and picked his way ashore.

"Thanks, Uncle Hasaki," his nephew said with meaning as he gathered his things.

Dawn lit a vibrant pink through the muggy, misty valley east.

"Um... uh, for what?" The man shook his head, fighting off the daze.

"For not giving up on me," Hiro smiled down at him.

Hasaki stood looking up at him, for once not feeling the water on his cold body. He actually understood what Hiro meant now; he remembered real feeling as warmth swelled in his chest. "You're welcome, Hiro." Hasaki nodded a little. "Go on, zhizi."

Hiro smiled and nodded again, then took off and eagerly went over the rock trail.

For the last few days Hasaki had watched Hiro go with pleasantness, then anger...

Now, it was with sad longing.

 **II**.

"Guys, you want to come with me to my uncle's temple tomorrow?"

The team looked at their leader in surprise, snapped out of an apparent funk.

Hiro's brows lowered as he paused on the wooden bridge with them.

"Girls?" he offered.

"I will accompany you, Hiro." Baymax said from the charger strapped to his back.

The teen grinned back at him. "Thanks, pal. But I meant those who _haven't_ been."

Honey and Fred sent pleading looks to GoGo, she looked back at them morosely.

"Uhm... uh, Hiro," Wasabi jumped in for them. "You've kind of been...?"

"I can take the week off if you want."

"NO!" They all jumped in now.

Whether they liked it or not, Hiro's visits with his uncle were benefiting him.

"You think I'll slide off the deep end again, huh?" He guessed anyways.

"Bro, we..."

"Do you have a swimming pool?" Fred asked suddenly.

"You mean a 300-foot water slide, fast-moving rivers and giant waterfalls?"

"Yes." He answered unironically.

Hiro fought a laugh. "Yes, Fred. We have all those."

"We'll try and make it, Híro." Honey said softly.

"I can take time off team," he clasped his left shoulder strap, trying again to be the leader of this team. They gave him another, gentler "no", and Hiro hid his reaction.

...

"What?" Aunt Cass looked at Hiro in surpise around 5 PM.

 _Again with the surprise._

"Do you want to go to Uncle Hasaki's with me?" Hiro checked Baymax's charger.

He should be fully charged on his new lithium ion battery by now.

"Aren't you flying on Baymax?" She asked with an odd look. A few people were in her café and Hiro wondered if that's why she was surprised, since he was back to a normal routine. Aunt Cass shook her head with a smile. "You've been there earlier."

"Right," Hiro rocked back on his heels. "And... I sort of wanted a second opinion on my fighting." His aunt gave him another strange look. "You know matrial arts, too?"

Cassandra stared a moment, then shook her head again. "Honey, don't be silly."

"Before..." Hiro came around the counter halfway. "When we were all trying to get Baymax back down to size and catch Yu..." She sighed. "My uncle said something."

"Your uncle says a lot of things, Hiro."

He tilted her head at her distracted focus. "Well, he never really got to finish it."

"He says a lot of things," she continued, "but nothing at all... I guess, though, he can be pretty good guy when he wants to be." Cassandra speedily diced an onion.

"He is," her nephew agreed, still not quite seeing her other point. Hiro continued in the same breath. "He was going to say that _your_ martial arts were better than his."

"Oh!" She narrowly missed cutting her thumb as slid her ingredients into a soup.

"Well?"

"Hiro," she laughed with force, removing a barely-touched tray. "What your Uncle Hasaki does is _not_ matrial arts; his best moves are when he sticks around... or at least tells you he's not going to." Cassandra added in a hush. Hiro came up by her.

"Then I want to learn what you have to teach." He insisted.

By this time, her only patrons for that day had left. She sighed a longer sigh.

"Aunt Cass, I'm sorry about your café. But hey! If you're as good as Hasaki said-,"

"Hasaki didn't _say_ anything."

"He didn't have to," Hiro grinned. "That's Big Hero 6's motto practically, Aunt Cass."

She covered her face. "What is Hiro?"

"That you can _way_ more. That it's never too late."

Cassandra rubbed her cheeks. "Honey, I know that," she peered down wearily. The focused young man Hiro worked hard to be warred with the lonely boy in his heart.

As did her own at times.

"Well... I mean, can't you at least talk to Uncle Hasaki more?"

"The week's up, he's free to go if he wants." She walked away.

"Aunt Cass, you can't honestly-,"

"Hiro, that's enough." Cassandra turned toward him sharply.

He didn't back down. "We finally find more of our family, and you just want to-,"

"HASAKI THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Hiro stumbled back to the far side, seeing things he wasn't meant to see.

"Honey," His aunt recovered, stepping over to him before he could catch his breath. Hiro looked up into her eyes as she took his face. "Hiro, honey, I love you _so_ much. But there are just _some. things._ you cannot undo. And... no matter how much you wish for them to stay the same, sometimes they just can't, honey. I'm sorry, Hiro."

He looked up into her eyes another moment.

"I'm gonna be late," Hiro told her before tightening Baymax closer and heading off.

"Hiro..."

"I'll be home later tonight."

...

The flight over had helped clear some of his thoughts, but the teen still thought.

"I am sorry our friends couldn't come, Hiro." Baymax said as he waddled with Hiro down a rocky labyrinth. The teen had a towel over his shoulder and the igneous rock felt warm under his bare feet the closer to the heated water the two came.

Hiro grinned up at Baymax. "Can always count on old Maxie though, huh?"

"I cannot grow old, Hiro." He said as his charge elbowed him.

"Well, bud, the sentiment stays." Hiro laced his hands over his head.

"What is your meaning, Hiro?"

"I don't know, Baymax, sometimes I think they-,"

"Baby!" The robot exclaimed.

Hiro suddenly felt his feet swept up off the ground as Baymax bounded downhill to a steaming pool cut out in a jagged area below; the teen was the one who was left panting as Baymax set him down and he saw Meikomo afloat in the tranquil water.

"Mei?" He said the name Hasaki used for her, edging a little closer for a better look.

"It is not recommended for expectant women to enter thermal springs."

Hiro shot back so fast he was almost to the opposing stone wall.

"Sorry, I know," the girl, only a few years older than Hiro, swam over and collected the decorative towel folded over on the rocky ledge. Baymax lifted Little Huan from his rubber-reinforced enclosure and gently handed him back to his bashful mother.

"Who is his biological father?" The robot asked.

"Baymax!" Hiro scolded as he came up beside him again.

"I saw on TV that is a common question to ask mothers of young children."

"No, no. It's okay." Meikomo cradled the baby to her wrapped chest. "I'm afraid I may never see him again." she saw them staring curiously. "My father-in-law has two kids. A daughter who I never met and then my husband, Hua Yu." Hiro's eyes widened at that last name. "I'm not really sure of the details. It was all arranged."

"No, it's... I shouldn't of pried." Baymax blinked at Hiro. "Er, we shouldn't have."

Meikomo smiled and bowed. "Well, enjoy your time here. Maybe not stay too late, Hiro, you'll have to be here early tomorrow." She took her son and carried him up.

" 'Yu'?" Hiro said aloud, as if in omen.

"Do you believe there is a connection between your uncle and Shou Yu?"

"Well, Yu isn't a totally uncommon name, Maxie." He touched his chin. "Eh," Hiro jumped into the water and splashed a surprised Baymax. "I'll worry with it later."

The robot watched him float away on his back with a calm smile and didn't argue:

After his safety, Hiro's happiness was the most important thing to Baymax.

To be continued...


	10. When darkness falls

_~`~ When the world is falling apart around you, find your center, stay the course, keep hope alive. ~`~_

 **I.**

"Your neurotransmitter levels are very high, Hiro." Baymax commented as his small friend laid along the length of his body, head down below his own and both his feet propped up on his rotund belly. Hiro let out a contented breath, laying out his arms.

"I've never been this happy in ever, buddy."

They swirled around in the steamy water together.

"I am a good friend?"

Hiro looked up into his eyes, smiling. Baymax blinked down into his.

"You're my _best_ friend, Baymax." The teen poked his egg-shaped face.

...

"I want this place destroyed." Hua Yu spoke into his communicator to the various robots around him. Twenty dark red, almost black-suited battle machines flew up behind their slimmer, matching-suited leader. "Everything you see is to be blown apart," he hissed. "To pieces. Blast the trees, level the temples, darken the water."

" _ **I**_ want Hiro Hamada retrieved and in one piece, Zhizi."

Hua wrinkled his nose in detestment behind his shielded face.

"You are my sole-remaining relative whom I am entrusting to retrieve my heir."

" _HEIR?!_ "

"DON'T-," Shou shrieked, his nephew screamed and caught his thigh as the current shot up to his waist. "Disappoint me, child. Your internal organs will be next should you fail me." The communicator clicked off and Hua winced as he tapped his head.

"Scan, then capture and retrieve to me Hiro Hamada unharmed. Let's move."

Hua positioned himself in mid-air and led his small strike force down. The man said and thought nothing of his wife and children; whom he'd all but forgotten anyways.

...

 _Back in San Fransoyko_...

GoGo laid looking up at neon-colored stars on her ceiling, she remembered better days when her and Tadashi would look up at the actual stars. Sometimes, after all the students had gone to bed, after their friends and even Fred had retired for the night, GoGo would find Tadashi standing on the small bridge to their classes. She'd walk up to him, place a hand on his shoulder, and... GoGo eyes flashed open wide.

She gasped a little and it took a moment for vision to adjust to the glowing plastic of pink and purple. Her breath came out in a small exhale and she turned to look at her phone. There was something suddenly wrong with not telling him, she realized.

 _I have to call him. I have to let Hiro know._

She was about to place her hand on it when it rang with an alert.

...

The robot's chest blipped with an alert and he put it on mute for the first time ever.

Baymax carried a bundled, sleeping Hiro up the rocky path. Somewhere between have belly-flopping contests with his reluctant friend, and trying to think of how he would be the successor to his uncle's temple after he learned more, Hiro had dozed off. The robot was almost to the top of the pass where his suit laid when the whole rock structure was struck with a seismic rumble. Hiro snapped awake and stumbled out of Baymax's arms just in time for him to be pulled close as a shard of rock fell.

The whole ceiling began to shake and crack.

"Hiro, we must get above ground."

"Come on," the teen said as he pulled his friend up. "We gotta get your-,"

There was a loud explosion as the once smooth rock descended and piled in front of the two, blocking their exit except for a space just big enough for one of them. Hiro was sure Baymax was going to insist he go through it when the robot took his hand and pulled him away just as the fissure reached overhead. Rocks plummented fast.

It was no surprise when Hiro took the lead and pulled Baymax back to the water.

"What'd we do? We're trapped!" Somewhere someone told him to use his big brain.

Another told him to close his eyes and feel where the rocks-,

"Hiro, there is a higher opening overhead." Baymax pointed to the other side of the water. The two rushed around and over to the exit's base. "I will push you up to it."

He did so.

"And I will pull you up into it," Hiro yanked Baymax up before he could negate him.

The robot managed to find an embedded rock to help out with this anyways and the two friends narrowly escaped an entire cavern collapse. Hiro gawked for all of three seconds before Baymax tugged on his arm and they used his glowing eyes to guide them down another shaking passage. They had nowhere else to go now but deeper into the dark earth. Hiro and Baymax had no idea what was going on to cause this.

And no idea if they would get out alive.

...

"What's happening?!" Hasaki ran out to see what was causing this.

There were no signals or alerts as there was no technology except for the lower lab.

No. Shou wouldn't have done this! This temple was sacred. Even with all the evil he had commited, Hasaki's older brother would _never_ have-, Pinpoints of lit-up eyes in the sky flashed about, crashing and knocking into his only home. Hasaki felt himself freeze as he watched the entrance to his family's legacy crumble before him. A few moves would have safely removed him from the point of fall, but Hasaki could not.

He could not fanthom this depth of betrayal.

Something that glowed yellow flashed from nowhere and pushed him aside as the pieces of gold and mahogany fell. Three more figures appeared and raced over to ask if there were more people inside; they didn't try to put a stop to the invaders but instead two of them worked to make sure all the falling debris was cast aside.

"Just... just my daughter," Hasaki gasped in realization. "And my grandsons!"

"I'll go," A pink-glowing girl said and raced inside.

"No," The one who had saved Hasaki's life grabbed her arm. "I'll go."

"GUYS!" The third one, one that glowed green and fought the debris, appeared.

"Hiro and Baymax are inside!" The fourth one, a darker blue warned them.

Hasaki was utterly immobilized.

"Taku," he whispered, horrified. The yellow-glowing girl turned toward him.

"No, Hiro." she quietly corrected him as she and the pink-glowing girl raced in.

The man watched in the darkness until one of the younger men got him to safety.

Like so many years ago, like so many times since, Hasaki Hamada did nothing.

Could do nothing.

...

"It is a car."

At first Hiro thought Baymax needed to be charged, but then there it was. A small, blue VW Beetle, one that hadn't been moved in a while, sat parked just at the top of a rise in the upper cavern. Hiro and Baymax looked at each other, then headed over. Upon reaching the driver's side, the two friends discovered the keys were in the ignition. Hiro watched Baymax trundle over and lift the open hood to peer into it. Though Hiro was a robotics expert, cars were never really his speciality. But Hiro did know to look for one vital thing from when he used to siphon a certain moped...

"It's got gas!" The boy exclaimed.

The cavern shook violently again and Baymax wrapped his arms around him.

"I will attempt to construct a grid simulation of this labyrinth and drive you safely to the surface. You will need to tell me of objects behind me as I dually navigate."

"And then what? We could reach a dead end."

"I have my license." Baymax tilted his head and said just as the ground shifted.

"Since when does the State of California give licenses to robots?!"

Baymax opened the front door and gently pulled Hiro over so he could get inside.

"There is no time to show you my virtual driver's license I received online."

"Assuring!" Hiro fought uselessly against his careful hands.

"You will need to run for higher ground as soon as I have cleared all obstacles."

The robot of course left himself out. Everything shook.

"You must get inside." He tried to push Hiro into the car.

"No!" The teen faced Baymax and climbed back out. "There's _no. way._ I'm letting you leave me." he suddenly got an idea as the rocky pathway ceased shaking. Hiro eyed the keys and jerked them out of the ignition. "Come with me," he yanked the surprised robot along and unlocked the trunk. The entire back was empty. "Get in."

"Hiro, I must drive you to safety."

"No, _I'm_ driving _you_ to safety." Hiro shoved Baymax in with all his strength.

If a robot could look shocked, Baymax certainly did. "Hiro, you must listen to-,"

"No, Baymax, it's not going down like this. I almost lost you a second time and I'm not taking that risk again. Now pipe down and get in." He gave another huge push.

Though a tight fit, Baymax went in successfully this time.

The earth now settled for a deeper, steadier rumble as Hiro slammed down hard on the trunk and headed for the driver's seat. Baymax's stream of muffled protests that Hiro wasn't old enough to drive fell on deaf ears until a loud thudding started.

"You stay in there and let me save! I'm doing this for your own good."

"Hiro, that was not me." Baymax told him.

Eyes widening, Hiro quickly got in and adjusted everything around him. He laughed nervously to himself. " 'Can't drive,' " The teen jeered. He started the VW up on his first attempt and started backing the car out, then up a new eastern path that went up the rocky cavern. Hiro was more then a little pleased with himself and he had to wonder why he didn't just do this before; driving in his _own_ machine, all by himself.

A dark, moving wall rose before him.

"Uh... uh... Bay... Baymax! It's dark. There's no lit torches down here."

"Turn the end of the left toggle sticking out of your wheel column, Hiro."

He did so and saw smoke rising. Frightened, the teen drove straight through it and felt the car jostle. His head barely missed the roof and he found the unobstructive road ahead to mean he was in the free and clear. Besides, things rising meant the top was definitely close-by. Hiro took a deep breath and smiled to himself, assured.

"Well, Maxie, seems like everyone was wrong about me. I can handle _any_ -,"

Hiro saw that he'd been re-routed to the rumbling cavern and now a steaming bed of magma was gradually rising to the surface. The warm, glowing orange detailed the befuddled lines working their way along Hiro's face just as he felt and heard a big thump out on the trunk, the roof rocking a little with something moving along it, then the inevitable side-to-side jerk as something entered the seat beside him. A big, white hand reached over, buckled Hiro up, and then gently pressed his knee down to stop them only three feet from the edge. Baymax turned to the teenager.

"Hiro, I believe I may have a solution."

"Yes?"

"I will climb onto the back of the car, then you will need to place the vechile into reverse. Afterwards, you will need to accelerate the gasoline and we will get out."

"Baymax..." Hiro doubted.

The robot touched his shoulder. "It is the only way I can think to save you."

Heated light sweltered inside the car and highlighted Hiro's heavy look.

"All right," he conceded.

...

 _12:40 AM_...

Aunt Cass and Dian Yu accelerated down the mountain paths. The younger woman bared her teeth and gripped onto the side door's upper handle as Cassandra bore the old, tech-outfitted Vega down the steep roads towards the Yu-Hamada Temple that roiled over in smoke, darkening the skies. Dian felt apprehension now. Not for the eruption; her father was surely out, but for getting the chance to see him now.

Dian hadn't seen the man in ten years.

When Cassandra saw how nervous she was, recalling how she'd told her everything she knew, the woman took Dian's hand. Startled, she looked up. Cass smiled at her tentatively. Even Hasaki's daughter wasn't exactly sure where she'd been for a little over a decade. She shook her head and returned her hands to the steering wheel of her nephews' experiment, wondering if she had to have air clearance to fly this car.

...

"Hiro, remember to secure your surgical mask tightly across your face."

The teen felt the heat, but hoped urgently not the burn, as he followed instructions from Baymax in how to drive uphill backwards. Nerves aside, and like most things involving tech, driving came naturally to Hiro. He understood everything the first time and didn't need to be reminded afterwards as Baymax got into position. It was, however, terrifying now to be in the driver's seat. Baymax's soft, clear and unauthoriative voice guided him just as effectively and reassuringly as if he were-

The ground exploded.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Somehow the charcoal-colored stone remainded.

"Uh..."

"Hiro, accelerate."

The teen gritted his teeth over having his thoughts interrupted.

Another near-explosion brought Hiro to the present and he lightly tapped down on the gas like he'd been instructed to. They cruised down in the VW before Baymax told Hiro to apply more pressure. Hiro saw the opening and imagined wings on him.

A purposely-deflated Baymax cocked his head from the back, "Did you remember to fasten your _-,?_ " The two "flew" over the bright, orange magma and immediately fell into it. Hiro tried stirring away as the liquid fire came into a full-tilt view, as if he were watching the world's best Hi-Def TV; Reality started to filter from his mind.

There was a loud, gassy hiss and a cloud of volcanic smoke thrust the car up into the air with a big shudder of it's frame. Hiro remembered that the fumes would go up as well and so he looked that way. Darkness. Everywhere. Baymax told him the smoke was noxious, recited the symptoms: Coughing, headaches, lack of energy...

Something about a mask. What mask? Hiro didn't need to hide from anything.

The robot's deflated body caught the rising vog and the pair were lifted out into the dimly-lit night. Hiro felt his mind slipping as he lay back against the seat. His entire head swam as it sounded like Baymax was telling him what was happening and for him to not take deep breaths. Hiro tried to reach out to him, to apologize, to plead for help in a weak voice. The blackness enveloped him before Baymax could come.

To be continued...


	11. I always thought it was you

**I.**

The ash-flurried earth was dark and thick as Hiro awoke to find an oxygen mask from out of nowhere had been placed on him. What was more, he found that he was on the rear-end rim of what turned out to be a _volcanic_ temple. The bright illumination of steaming, bubbling magma streaming out in gradual torrents from the long cracks in the melting temple showed that clouds of ash and soot were rising in the pitch-black sky, obscuring the moon and stars in true darkness. Hiro gasped as he looked down.

An endless wall of shadow was down there and he panted despite the oxygen. Could he climb down...? No. No, it was too steep; he was too high. If only Hiro had his suit.

"Hello, Hiroto." The faintly-accented voice of a man said from behind him.

Trapped between rising and falling death, Hiro turned to a dark-suited man with what looked to be a dragon's head on. His eyes widened and the vibrant orange glow of the magma brought out the gold in their irises. Then, a redness as he narrowed his black brows. _This_ was the same design as Baymax's new suit. But was _this_ the same thief?

...

Meikomo rushed to seal all entrances to the lab and all dojos. She knew her father-in-law had made it out safely and knew he would not return. It was his way. Long ago he had tried to be some great hero, and, although he cared a great deal, it was one of his familys' beliefs that one must watch out for themselves. So he trusted Mei to be okay.

She was calm but quick as she checked to make sure no satellite feed could enter the temple and then she picked up her inquisitive son to make their way out. With normal clothes on and a pull-string bag of some of Little Huan's things, Meikomo went for the only entrance not sealed off. The baby wailed his upset when the two quickly became entrapped between two red-hot, sweltering walls. Meikomo's eyes went wide and for once couldn't get past her shock to soothe him. The walls... the wall concealed heat.

Fire.

"A volcano," she realized with horror. All the lushness of the surrounding area and the hot springs made total sense now, but why would the Yu family have built a temple on a _volcano?!_ She could worry about that later. If... Meikomo looked down at her son as he looked up at her helplessly. Her thin brows went down and Meikomo dashed across the cool ground, thanking her ancestors that Hasaki had reinforced the stone with iron and steel just in case they experienced an attack from below. She ran up the volcano.

Her memory of the layout and the glow of the walls even as the torches had been put out for the night served her well and Meikomo found her way into the parking lot. She wished she had a phone with her but she knew Hasaki's philosophy. Oh! The exit was sealed. Meikomo had been told the lab doubled as a bunker and not to try to escape.

That's what he believed; everyone had their place. Like his brother minus the malice.

But... but _this was a_ **volcano!**

Meikomo wasn't afraid to die, anymore then the Hamadas or Yu were or had been, but she couldn't let her son die. No, not her two babies! She tried to think of another way out when a space between the concrete walls from a seismic jostle caught her eye. It was with the next rumble that Meikomo dashed for the thin opening and slipped right through it. She gladly saw that the headlights gleaming from Hasaki's old Volkswagon.

When she got to it, however, she saw it was the wrong color and Baymax lay with no life in his eyes across the front. Meikomo was surprised she even felt this way, but as she drew closer she saw shards of green scattered around his arm, a blue chip laying in whole on the floor and what looked to be a note scrawled in hasty Mandarin waiting.

She sighed, remembering her inability to read and understand Chinese.

A haunted feeling sunk in now. Where was Hiro? Mei looked about the opened door and the more intense rumbling made her move. Propping up the pudgy, rice ball man, Meikomo started up the car (which thankfully someone must have not known enough about to disable) and, wedging an excited Little Huan between her knee and the soft, oval head of Baymax, put the car into gear and drove to the highest point she could.

What she hadn't seen further down the way, illuminated by the back-tail lights, were scraps and pieces of dark-red robots. As if someone had systematically fought them.

...

Hiro rose with some effort and stared up at the masked villain with even more of it.

"What's going...?" He barely got out. "Where's... where-?"

"I've come to bring you home, Hiroto."

"Hiro," the teen mumbled.

"Hiro? Oh, well, your real name is Hiroto. One of many lies, I suppose."

It occurred to Hiro as he struggled to sit up that this man wasn't attacking him, but in the roiling heat and blackness he couldn't be sure he heard his words correctly. It was hard to see and think. Wait... Baymax! Hiro looked around frantically for him. Nothing.

"Where's my friend?!" He demanded hoarsely, pushing himself to his feet.

"With my wife, Meikomo."

Hiro's brows arched down. "You-?"

"Yes." He addressed the teen's confusion, lifting off part of his mask so only the mouth piece remained. "Huan is my son, Hasaki my father, and Shou Yu is our mutual uncle."

...

Hasaki watched the temple burn without seeing anyone emerge.

Where was Meikomo? _Little Huan?!_

He had completely missed the reproving looks Wasabi and, less apparently, Fredzilla had given him before going off to fight the robots. The very same they had fought in the city not long before. But as he watched the flaming ruins of his home, it felt like it.

A car pulled out of the mountain pass leading to the erupting volcano. The lights on his face made him snap to attention, away from the intense, bright heat, and turn to see who was exiting. A small, thin young women, her dark hair quite short and cut at a slant down to her chin on each side, stepped out of the car. She was pale-faced but breathless with excitement when she saw Hasaki. The man stared back imperceptibly.

" _Father!_ " She cried joyously and ran towards him with her arms out.

He shook his head at this before seeing Cassandra emerge from the driver's side.

And so, Hasaki ran.

The young woman advancing on him ran straight for his arms and he past her.

"Cassie!" He cried, half-thrilled, half-relieved.

She came to a running halt, her arms holding nothing but hot, thick air.

Dian Yu-Hamada turned in time to see Miss Cass deliver a round-house kick to his jaw.

...

Hurry. Hurry...

Honey-Lemon and GoGo combed all the dojos, tried their communicators even though they failed, they tried everything to locate Tadashi's brother and Baymax. For, in truth these days, that's what Hiro was. He was a dear friend, but their leader? Honey forced this thought out of her mind as she and GoGo finished with this and tried their luck at a dragon-statued entrance Hiro had bragged about. GoGo, herself, knew what she had to do once they got Hiro safely out of there, and she _was_ getting him out at all costs.

...

Hiro stood with all the strength he could manage, then glared at Hua.

"You're the one, aren't you?" He asked squarely.

The man nodded.

"You took all my tech!"

"Sue me," Hua quipped.

Something was wrong, Hiro realized. Where were the threats? The hostage demands?

"You took me," Hiro stated crossly. "You have me now, so what's your deal?"

Hua lifted a brow, motioned the bots that were of Hiro's design away, then pointed to a dark opening. "Two of your friends are coming now, looking for you. Go meet them."

Hiro's forehead wrinkled under his mop of hair. "You can't honestly think I'd believe-,"

"HIRO!" They called, Honey's accent mingled with the more strident tone of GoGo's.

His expression changed.

"I took your designs, you may take my word for it," Hua swept a hand out, indicating for Hiro to take his leave. "But," he said as the teen started eagerly. "Be aware you've been deceived by them." Hiro turned toward him, questioning. Hua nodded once. "Yes, even friends are few among us whom we can trust." The teen was ready to argue this.

"Friends can be like family, or some such nonsense, is that what you are going to tell me, Hiroto?" Hua's eyes gleamed an amused orange-gold. Hiro's darkened to a ruby-brown of seething. "They're lying to you, Hiro. Withholding information from you, as it were." Hiro turned and walked towards their voices. "They knew about me. They knew your relation to Shou Yu." The teen tensed. "And, they knew about your parents, too."

"Híro!"

"I'll check on top, there's an opening up ahead.

"I don't believe you," He turned to back to Hua, with doubtless certainity in his voice.

The man again motioned for him to leave. "They knew, Hiro, for weeks now. Go on."

The erupting volcano made Hiro tense up again, then run inside to find his friends.

His ankle buzzed. "Just give it a moment," he promised quietly.

...

Meikomo looked down from the only space that wasn't carpeted in streaming lava. The suit she had spotted and collected through the maze lay in pieces in the back. Much to her disappointment, she'd been switched around by falling rocks and dead ends (only some of which she'd done herself) and ended up back at the top. Trying the only way to get to the top of the temple by car had worked... but the end result was so not so.

She held her quivering baby to her as she looked down into the dark water below.

Lava bloomed from the top, threatening to cover and incase everything now. Mei knew by the streaks of light behind her that they were far too busy to come for her. The car, she turned in shock, was already being partially ingested by lava. She looked down at her stunned son in the small square of grey stone that wouldn't be there after another moment, tucked his small head under her chin, then leapt for the rushing water below.

...

Hiro, excited to have his friends here, to have Baymax be okay, rushed through what was the empty, verdant dojo of his uncle's and headed for the temple door. He did not forget he'd have to bow to it upon exiting when he heard GoGo suddenly shout loudly:

"I can't take this!"

"Leiko, we have to keep looking."

"Baymax's signal is back on. Hiro's vitals are elevated but he's okay."

"Still, we need-," Her shadow appeared at the cracked down, broken open from all of the seismic activity. GoGo shouted "No!" again and seemed to drag her away. "Wait."

" _What_?" Honey's voice was unusally sharp.

"Honey."

"What?" She softened at this.

"I can't take this," GoGo slipped to the floor, burying her face. "Constantly going back and forth, we _need_ to tell Hiro. We've given him space, he's seen a therapist. Honey, I tried pro-botting for him. The only thing that helps Hiro is Baymax and Hasaki. And..."

"And?" Honey placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. Hiro listened, partly in shadow.

"And we need to tell Hiro his parents were killed. He deserves to know the-,"

Hiro bolted back, then froze.

"First we need to find him." Honey tried to pull GoGo to her feet as the ceiling cracked.

"Hasaki knew too, did you know that? He told me so when I got that shock collar off of him. The man was wearing it when he first met us. He worked for Yu back before he-,"

Hiro stood where he was, perfectly comprehending everything. Then, blank-faced and with no emphasis, he pulled off the health-monitoring watch, threw it across the grass into the falling, dark debris, then turned to walk quietly and stolidly back to his cousin.

...

Nothing earthly could remove a son from his mother's arms, but somehow, when Mei looked up her son had slipped out. Her brown-gold eyes widened before she narrowed them and straightened herself out to dive towards the falling child. They were close to the water when she caught her quiet son in her arms and held him close. Just as they could see their falling shadow reflect from the glow of the volcano, something wrapped around Meikomo's arms. She looked up to see a besuited Baymax grasp onto her and bring her close to his chest. He spun like a big weather vane before they hit the water.

And just like that, they flew off faster then what she thought was possible.

...

Hiro faced the man who hadn't lied, but he, himself, couldn't think straight right now.

"Let's take this venue elsewhere, perhaps?" His cousin suggested.

"Where?" The teen looked about disconcertingly. "And _where's_ _Baymax?!_ "

Hua extended a hand out to the west. "Anywhere." he smiled at Hiro. "Your bot friend is right there, see. That light speeding off across the water." Hiro saw, then turned to him with a glower. "You want your tech back? I can bring you to it. Just come home."

Hiro backed up towards the edge but the lack of a rescuing hand frightened him. "I... I just want to go home now. I don't want anything to do with your uncle," Hua lifted a brow and indicated him to go back towards the voices of those who loved him, who'd kept secrets from him. "Who treat you like a child, Hiro? If you come to live with me and your uncle, you'll be treated like the man you are." He watched Hiro straining to look around him for the girls. "Don't you want to know what happened to your mom and dad?" Hiro met his eyes from above his own oxygen mask. "About your family?"

"Hiro!" They were almost there.

"We can tell you all we know," Hua smiled, the light of the magma causing his eyes to gleam more. Hiro stood very still, he thought of Tadashi and what it would mean for the brothers if one of them knew the truth. Aunt Cass, Hasaki, his friends... none of them had told him that. Hiro loved them, but he knew only Baymax wouldn't do this.

"I'll go," he said quietly, in part to protect Honey and GoGo from being outnumbered.

When his teammates arrived to the ledge they found no one there. The magma rolled in big gobs and was ready to swallow the last spot on the mountain as they leapt into the water. Landing waist-deep, they spotted five villians taking off from the scene and immediately GoGo sped after them lightening-quick, not even waiting or assisting the chem-entranced Honey. She matched their breakneck speed until they all verged off.

As soon as they separated, Hiro's signal was lost.

...

Dian watched her childhood home melting before her eyes. Magma spilled into deep gullies around them and sloughed off into other routes through out the valley. Hasaki stood beside Cassandra, who was just as speechless as he was. Fred, Wasabi and then a panting Honey-Lemon came to stand beside them. The six watched the brilliant glow together. Hasaki took Cassandra's hand in his, Dian took his other hand and he looked down at her in realization. The freed young woman stared back at him, forlorn. There were no words Hasaki could think to say to her, so he squeezed her small, cool hand.

He was sorry. The man tried to show her that with his eyes.

Once she saw him acknowledge this, she looked away.

To be continued...


	12. Fighting shadows

_~ Hope is the only thing stronger than fear. ~_

 **I.**

She ran so fast she ended up across the big river. GoGo felt the water fan up in sheets behind her blurring feet as she blazed at the one she knew had Hiro. Well, "knew" for a fact wasn't exactly correct. But she felt it. The abducter looked down and started to re-direct back. 'Oh no you don't!' GoGo thought as she agilely leapt into aerial pursuit.

A lazer arm pulsated once and shot down at her. GoGo cut right through it.

The heroine almost had Hiro, who was turned from her, in her arms when hands grabbed hold of them. Someone caught her legs, too, and she watched as Tadashi's brother was taken as she was pulled back in a slow, heart-pounding second. GoGo was tossed with intentional harshness when she was mere inches from Hiro and the impact of her failure made her sienna eyes widen, her lilac lips part around a scream.

 _HIRO!_ GoGo heard her mind explode.

She was returned to the dark earth below.

...

Aunt Cass watched the bright storm of somehow muffled chaos. Wasabi and Fred had hurtled into the fiery ruins, determined to search for their team. Honey hurried over to her and held down the band that monitored Hiro's vitals to her eyes, explaining to her:

"Hiro's alive."

Alive?

The crash and roar of the muffled storm tried to break back into her reality.

A warm pressure on her hand made her look up into Hasaki's warm golden eyes. It was this, Hiro's eyes, that made her turn with hope. The boys returned, shouting to them that they had to get above ground and quickly. Cassandra looked to them but saw no signs of her nephew. She fought. Against Dian and Hasaki's arms, and all of them. Cassandra tried to get past their frantically assuring blockade. Finally, with a heavy breath and wide, dry eyes, she looked down at the monitor watch and took it.

She gripped it close and allowed Honey and Dian to take her back to the car.

Hasaki turned to Wasabi and Fred. "Where's... where's the rest of you?"

The two looked at each other.

"He got away!" GoGo ran at a normal pace up to them, then staggered to a halt.

"GoGo," Fred laid a hand on her shoulder which she immediately knocked off.

Wasabi tried but paused. "Hey, who got away? The ones who did this? Yu?"

"Hiro," she choked out, bracing herself against her knees. The boys met eyes again in terror. Hasaki tightened his fist in silent rage and knowledge; more for what his older brother had done then in taking Hiro. "They took Hiro and got away! I... I tried to. I..."

Fred tried to say something as a rush of air drew near but stopped as it did.

"GoGo..." Wasabi failed to get out too.

There was a soft thud as something that had been suspended, listening, landed. They all turned to see Baymax despositing a Chinese girl and her son on the ground. As he looked at all of them to assess their health, Wasabi took note of his exposed cartridge.

Only a blue card and a fragment of green card remained.

 _ **Tadashi's**_ card. Wasabi started shaking and Fred went wide-eyed.

"Where is Hiro?" Baymax asked, noting his absence. "My sensors indicate he is-,"

"They took Hiro, Baymax." GoGo turned to him in her own, miserable failure. With the greatest repentence, she said not only to him, but Tadashi. "He's gone." _Gone_. Gone...

Baymax's over-literal mind knew what that word was in all it's metaphorical essense.

He took flight immediately and raced through the rising smoking to the volcano.

The robot went through every crumbling remain, took every path they'd been together that night, and circled the surrounding area. It took thirty seconds. When he assessed Hiro was not there and everything was too encumbered by lava, Baymax shot off after the long-gone abducters in the direction of Hiro's vitals. But, even with his long-range scanner running at maxium capacity, Baymax would fruitlessly fly and search all night.

 **II**.

 _Three days into the new semester later_...

GoGo sat with the drapes in Hiro's lab drawn down; They were from the medical office Baymax had worked in during downtime and only the screen she typed on was aglow now. Fred came in suddenly, annoyingly letting in the hall light, and strolled up to her.

"Hey, Leiko!" He grinned, knowing this would tick her off. "Brought you some lunch."

The woman ignored the bag of food held out to her.

"It's... not rancid. Aunt Cass made it as a thank you."

They both knew this was a lie as Hiro's aunt didn't even have the store open today.

"Okay... I made it. With Honey's help." She still ignored him as she typed. He looked down at the plain, brown bag in his hand, then up as she was trying hard to assimilate the green chip shard - which contained an entire month's worth of all the thoughts and memories Baymax had - into the blue medical chip Hiro had made Maxie as a back-up.

A new, yellow battle chip lay in wait for it's insertion with Tadashi's hat kiddie corner.

"I-I guess I'll go give it to Wasabi, but he and your cousins are out searching..."

A hand reached out to take his arm and Fred looked into GoGo's soft, sienna eyes.

"Just hang in there, okay?" She told him gently. His own blue eyes pricked. "It's not over yet. Now leave that lunch here and go get ready for your mascot duties, Fred-o."

Fred nodded at this, almost smiling at her.

"Hey, I didn't forget what you did back there. At the pier." GoGo smiled to herself. "Or any moment before or after," she turned. "Now get outta here, you're distracting me."

...

The front of the store was dark, the door ajar, as Hasaki Hamada walked through the front of the Lucky Cat Café. He wiped his feet nervously and glanced around at all his sister-in-law had done to the place. The bell chime hadn't gotten her to come out, nor phone calls. Nor any of the error-filled text messages he had sent with the new phone Mei had suggested he buy. Since Hasaki had been left a substantial inheritance on his baba's side, he had finally been forced to use it to get a small apartment for him and one for the girls. The man carried store-bought food which swung from one arm and a photo album he thought could be of some use. Everything was off, save for one light.

"Cassie?" Hasaki asked in concern as he headed for the back room. A pressure near his ankles and he fell down face first on the dark floor. "Bawahhh! Security beam! I... I need-," the lights switched on and he saw that it was the cat rubbing against his legs in welcome. Cassandra stood in the doorway, watching the entangled two impassively.

"Cassandra! Cassie...? You didn't... I mean, you haven't. Are you...?" Hasaki stood up.

"Why are you here?" She asked in a tired voice.

Hasaki was a little disconcerted by this; Everyone always talked about how witty and warm Aunt Cass was, but all the worried man saw was a woman who's dark jade eyes bordered on being jaded. He knew why but _why_ with everyone else was she pleasant or gentle or... Hasaki remembered then. It was his fault. That's why he'd come here.

He-

 _"Why_ are you here?" She asked again more pointedly, habitually going about making coffee and placing two, big earthenware cups down. "Unless... Unless Dian is talking?"

Ever since her father had taken her back in, she had been silent. Hasaki had explained that all three were as good as in witness protection now and they'd witnessed enough.

Well, Cassandra thought to herself, that's what she got for still using phone books.

"I don't know what to say..."

"Then we're right back to where we started." She said for him.

Hasaki started to slide the photo album towards her when he noticed some traditional mats sitting off to the side of the counter. His eyes appraised that she had removed all of the colorful, little tables Baymax had made and the glass counter was totally empty.

"I don't understand, aren't you going to run this shop anymore?"

"I guess it's time for a facelift," she shrugged limply, her lip tugged up as she sipped her black coffee. Hasaki picked up his own. Cassandra really studied him. She saw his eyes sweep the parlor, worry pucker his forehead. "You don't think I should change?"

Hasaki met her eyes gravely. "I am... _very. sorry_." he told her in a hoarse voice.

It's a little too late for that. The words were there, but neither one spoke them.

Cassandra took the bag of food she hadn't made from him. "I'll go put this way."

 **III**.

GoGo worked into the late hours that fourth night. She remembered when she'd found Baymax floating along in the cool water as the volcano died down. Soot particles had fallen like snow and a vibrant pink sunrise from the east helped diffuse the rolling fog in subdued orange. The woman had collected the floating green shard and, by herself, lifted the water-logged-, _Bump._ Her fist fell against the table and a soft, whirring noise of something mechanical made her look up; Baymax was blinking and looking around.

With a start, GoGo rolled right over to him.

"Baymax," She said anxiously, rising to her feet and waving a hand quickly in front of his big, white face. "Baymax, it's me... GoGo," she took his hand and placed Tadashi's hat in it urgently. "And, and Hiro," She placed his helmet in the other. "Tadashi, Hiro."

The robot looked down at both items.

"Do you remember? _Do you know who they are!?_ "

He met her eyes and the embattlement of hope and despair grew in her heart.

"Do you know who I am?" She asked softly.

His head flopped to one side, jostling himself a bit. "Yes," he replied.

GoGo nodded in encouragement.

"Baymax," he sputtered.

She placed her face in her hand.

...

 _2004._

Cassandra sat with a present sitting in her lap. It was unusually cold for early summer but the night had come fogless and peaceful. The woman sat tugging at the scratchy, new kimono her grandmother had insisted she wear when serving customers. When Cass Yuri had gotten expelled from medical school, this was the last thing she wanted.

Chihiro should have accepted this position, not her.

A quiet woman with dark hair in a well-ironed, black business dress led both of Cass's young nephews out with one hand each on their backs. She blinked in surprise. Okay, _now_ she was confused. She hadn't been called into work that morning and instead the woman had been called to come to this strange state building by some social worker.

"Hello, Auntie." Tadashi said cordially, his face shy but composed. Hiro fidgeted about.

"Hey, kiddo." She greeted back, confused. Now she definitely was sure something was up. The case worker leveled her with the same scrupulous look everyone who met her gave the black-wearing, hair-dyed goth girl. "What's... this all about?" Cass was wary.

...

Hasaki placed the photo album and the small tatami mats on a counter in the kitchen, then looked at Cassandra in the same spot he stood in when she had bequeathed him Hiro for a week; That was almost two weeks ago and Hasaki had completely failed. He rubbed his hands together nervously, then tried to approach her with his arms out. It was what Hiro had done, right? This family liked hugs. He immediately dropped them when she turned to catch a glimpse of him out of the corner of her green eye, and her lips went up. Cassandra walked up to him and folded the dark bangs on his brow back.

"I gotcha real good, huh?" She observed the purple bruising with a gentle hand, tilting his chin a little. Hasaki tried to smile back at her. "Well, Tadashi came inside like this a few times." Cassandra explained as she gingerly tapped it and watched the man flinch.

"I didn't know Hiroto could..." He stopped cold.

The woman removed her hand slowly and wiped it on a dish towel. "Let me get you an ice pack." She did so anyway even at his protests. "Y'know," Cassandra handed him a well-wrapped pack from a wall-to-wall lined freezer. "It wasn't just you who didn't help or offer to." He looked at her in shock as she helped align the dish towel-wrapped ice along his tender bruising. "My parents didn't help either. Your parents... I don't even think they sent a card. No, it was just the three of us." she looked down at her hands.

Her empty, cold hands.

Hasaki reached one out to her but didn't touch them. Cassandra met his eyes not out of accusation, but out of confusion. She asked him with her own eyes. Why hadn't he or anyone come? Hasaki stared back at her with a thousand answers darting around in his mind. Because it wasn't safe. Because Shou wanted both the boys. Because Shou was the _real_ reason why Hiro's parents... he didn't say these things, but he saw Cass take in his silent knowledge. She _saw_ that he knew. But she also saw something else.

"I can't forget that you were never here," she grabbed another dish towel to wad up, wishing she had some day-old donuts to snack on. Hasaki came slowly up beside her.

 _Can you forgive me?_

"We're going to find Hiroto," he said, taking the towel out of her hands.

Cassandra looked up at him and touched his face, tears pooling to her eyes.

"You're all..." Desperation for her boys, for family. Could Hasaki even be _trusted_ now?

"I'm not all you have left." He said to her unfinished statement.

She grinned and looked away. "No," Cassandra swiped the towel back and blotted her eyes. "It's not that. I finally understand why you were mad at me." Hasaki pulled back with a confused look. "Yes, I know why. It's because I was never like my sister. I don't think you even realize it, but for all our lives we fight in the shadow our family's cast."

...

Fred poked sleepily at Baymax's chest. The robot, fully charged but overloaded with all sorts of tests, questions and commands, slumped over with a sleepy-like, eye-blink. It was four in the morning and the young man raised his dazed, light blue eyes to find a determined GoGo going back through codes she had already glanced over hundreds of times. Fred took a deep breath through his nose and swept to his feet, grabbing up a sheet used to cover projects and coming over to try placing it over GoGo's shoulders.

"Put that dusty, old thing on me and you'll be using it to scale the window to escape."

"You don't have to be so mean," Fred muttered. His rounds always ended up here, but this was by far his latest. "I mean, I stay up with you while Wasabi and Honey work..."

"Please Fred!" GoGo cut him off before he could say "with the cops".

Suddenly, Baymax's head jerked up. The robot's eyes expanded red and he turned to Fred menacingly. GoGo sighed and apologized, but swiped at his hands when he tried placing the old sheet over her again. When she saw him rub at his eyes sleepily, GoGo smiled a little and gave his arm a pat. "I'll be done in just a few, okay?" she told Fred.

He nodded vaguely when GoGo instructed him to go to bed. " 'Kay...night."

"Night, nitwit."

She didn't realize that Baymax was walking mummy-like after Fred, still red-eyed.

"Oh, can't forget this," GoGo picked the blue-and-one-green-pieced chip up and stuck it back into Baymax's port drive. "There ya go, buddy." she pushed it back in and gave the end a light push shut all while keeping her saffron eyes averted. Right after having "fixed" the chip, GoGo had tried this. "Let's get to work." She plopped back down now.

"You are not... giving up on me?" A shaky, mechanical voice asked.

The ghost of a shadow filled her core and she looked up into Baymax's dark eyes.

He blinked.

GoGo stared unseeingly for a moment, then she nodded once as her eyes focused.

Because, she realized, _his_ eyes were focusing.

"Do you know your name?"

"Yes."

"Okay...?"

"Name: a brief description of... of..." He wracked his database. "Gummy bears."

GoGo touched his chest and Baymax looked back down at her.

"I'm never giving up on you," She vowed quietly.

...

"Eck," Cass stuck her tongue out as she and Hasaki sat across from each other on the window seat. "Euhhlech," she carefully removed the offending piece of donut she had taken a bite out of. "Where did you say you got these donuts again?" she complained.

Hasaki dropped his shoulders with a sigh, "The grocery store down the block," he said.

Cassandra watched him plop his head back against the bay windows.

"Well," She made a noise of disgust. "I thought homegrown and homemade were the only things we..." His home was gone, just as her only real family was, too. Cassandra laid her own head back against the glass and let out a quiet breath. Mochi hopped up and settled down contentedly on their feet, causing Hasaki to sneeze almost instantly.

He rubbed at his red nose and looked up to see her sympathetic gaze.

"I guess I never really gave you the benefit of your experiences, huh?"

His mouth tugged up and his shaggy hair fell forward. "It's not like I did much better."

Cass pulled herself up into a sitting position. "Maybe we could start over." she offered.

Hasaki gave her a puzzled look, then watched as she held out her hand.

"Cass Yuri-Hamada."

The man hesistated at her speculative eyes before placing his own hand in hers.

"Hasaki _Yu_ -Hamada..." He didn't treat this like a joke.

She didn't either.

"Shou Yu is my..."

"I know," Cassandra nodded. It hit Hasaki like nothing else could. He saw his brother, sister-in-law, nephews. His two children, his wife. Taken. He could no longer talk to his mother and father. Taku... Dian, Hua, _Tisha_. Taku! Hiro! Tadashi! Hasaki fell into her arms and wept. The grown man grabbed the only other person who could understand and held her to him. He cried for the years of pain his family had been put through, in that moment, Hasaki mourned for the first time all of the grief and agony _he_ had put people through; simply by being silent. There was no vow he could take, no promise.

He knew knowledge was treacherous and deep down, he did not want to die.

Courage belonged to everyone else; Hasaki himself was the coward and the monster.

Her arms around him sealed his fate.

"Whatever you're thinking, I want you to know this is _not_ your fault." She felt the man quiet in her arms and pressed him to her for emphasis. "This an entire lifetime of fear and torture coming back to you." Cass pulled back and made her red-faced brother-in-law look into her eyes. "Fear and torture that if you talked," She paused, taking a hard breath, "That if you talked... you'd be sentencing the rest of us to death. I know, Dian told me everything." Cass took his hands as he sat back; Hasaki looked old and worn.

Drained.

She saw some fragment of Hiro in his face and touched it. Hasaki took a deep breath and closed his eyes, holding her hand to his cold cheek. He smiled and gave it a light kiss. Cassandra watched as he released it and stared at him uncertainly now, waiting.

Hasaki nodded once, "We will find Hiro," he told her, his dark gold eyes rimmed in red but hotter-looking then the erupting volcano that had destroyed his home. " _ **We will**_."

They took each other's hands as the sun shone in gradually through the concaved windows.

...

GoGo laid with her head flopped down on the desk at seven in the morning, her purple-streaked bangs hanging straggly in her face. The bright sun floating in soft shafts danced and drifted across her and caused her to rub at her tired eyes. She sighed when her makeup smeared; it was the first time since Tadashi finished Baymax that she'd pulled an all-nighter. Since Professor... The very thought alone made her groan. What was she thinking? This wasn't her robot to fix, but, the last of Baymax's memories might be the missing link they needed to find Hiro. She raised her eyes.

Baymax was gone.

"Baymax?!"

GoGo turned to see that the newly refurbished lab - courtesy of some students, Fred and even a new 3D printer from Krei - and saw that all the humanoid machines from various student projects on campus were bandaged, resting on random hospital beds and had suckers clasped in their cardon-fiber hands. She gave her head a shake, then turned to see Baymax hugging two blue items to his chest. GoGo saw what they were.

"Who... Who do those belong to, Baymax?" She nearly jumped out of her chair.

"They are Hiro's helmet and Tadashi's hat."

"YOU REMEMBER?!"

He blinked and looked up. "I remember you telling me, GoGo."

She dropped back down in her chair with her head in her hands.

GoGo heard him shuffling around saying "You need a hug." "You need a hug."

"What am I going to tell the others?" She said hopelessly as she turned to sulk.

Something warm and soft hugged her from behind. "You need a hug."

She gave a sad smile as she patted his arm. "I won't give up on you," she said gently.

Baymax suddenly picked GoGo up and lifted her up to his eyes.

"Tadashi said this."

"I know," GoGo smiled sadly again, "that's why I said it."

"Your body is deprived of necessary energy. I recommend rest, soothing music and fist-,"

GoGo was done. "Put me down, please."

He blinked. "Will you ask who I am?"

"Who are you?"

"I am Baymax, I protect the mind and body of the sick and injured."

She nodded to herself. "That's good enough," she decided.

"I am also Hiro's healthcare companion and best friend."

Her breath caught. "What?" She didn't dare hope...

"I remember you, GoGo. I know who you are."

Tears brimmed her eyes. "You do?"

He nodded once.

GoGo clutched onto him immediately. "Where's Hiro, Baymax?" she insisted.

"I do not remember, all I know is what you told me... " He looked down at her in realization. "You did not give up on me," he hugged GoGo close to him. "But you require sleep. I recommend... I... I..Hiro. "

"We'll find him," she promised.

"It is not a matter of inability, it is a matter of what the abducter's request in exchange for Hiro."

GoGo was quiet, then met his eyes. "Baymax, the abducters killed Hiro and Tadashi's parents."

 **IV**.

"Well, you got me." Hiro stood in Shou Yu's hidden bunker. The man watched him with half-closed eyes; defiance fired in every nerve of the boy. He was not here against his will, he had not made any attempts to escape. "Now what do you want with me?"

To be continued...


	13. Where we finally are: Pt 1 of 2

_~ When one life meets another, something new will be born. ~ -_ Cynthia.

 **I.**

Hiro placed his forehead upon Baymax's chest, taking deep, concentrated breathes as Honey and Wasabi had suggested he do. He reached over and took his brother's green chip in his hand, bit his thumb, then looked at it. Creases and cracks coursed randomly along what was once a smooth, perfect surface. Hiro lowered his brows in the rising light of the window; dawn was just about there. He closed his fingers one by one around it, then held the chip to his anxious heart to calm it's turbulent pace.

"I promise," he said in the soft dusk, "I'll never let anything hurt you again..."

 _Including me._

With a start, fifteen-year-old Hiro bolted awake in bed. He checked his Sharpwatch:

4:32. _The same time I finished Baymax._

Hiro looked around the blue-gray room at all the imported lab equipment he'd been given. All of the robots for the pro-botting he took part in lined up along the wall in the farthest corner to him. He looked up at the enormous skylight that he'd wanted and then down at the picture of Tadashi, Aunt Cass and him he had printed off from an old photo gallery that had been uploaded years ago. Hiro laid down his close-cut head, staring at his family in the light gloom before drawing in a long, deep breath.

He then exhaled hard, shakily, before finally turning his back to them.

...

"AHHHHHH!" Meikomo wailed.

There was the sound of running feet and then her father and sister-in-law burst in.

"Honey, what's wrong?" Hasaki, complete in decorate nightrobe, opened her door.

"Is it time?" Dian poked her head in. She wore a lavender nightdress and her now long, dark hair was pinned up to one side by a large, lotus flower. Hasaki backed up just a bit as she made her way over to take Mei's hand. "Is it time to see a doctor?"

"We've talked about this," Her father warred with Dian's logic as he lingered inside the doorway. "We can't expose ourselves by going... outside. Especially you both."

"Just like when I was growing up, Father?" Dian caught his eye rebelliously.

"It is a minor contraction."

They all looked up to see Baymax. Hasaki wilted with relief, but Dian sat with a firm hand clutching her sister-in-law's. She stared with pointed expectation at the robot. He nodded to acknowledge her, even if he couldn't process Dian's double meaning.

"I am observing her and the fetus and will notify you when it is time to assist."

" _So_ , you'll be able to deliver him, then." Hasaki hastily confirmed.

Dian shot him a look while Mei fell in resignation on the bed, her cold press askew.

"Alrighty then," he continued. "I'll go get Baba's Book of Tradition and run by the-,"

"Meikomo will soon need to be transported and seen by a real doctor, Hasaki." The robot relayed to him on no uncertain terms what had to be done. "I will notify you."

"But... but can't you-? You're a nursebot. This is... this is right up your alley!"

Where had he heard this before?

"Hasaki, though I am capable of this endeavor, it is best for mother and child to be seen by an all-medical staff; A skilled, fully-licensed doctor and not one in an alley."

 _Or a phone book_. Dian's leer had stayed in tact the entire time when Hasaki noticed.

"I'm her legal guardian," he directed at her.

" _I'm_ your daughter." She countered. "Do I need to get Miss Cass on the phone?"

His eyes widened, then he tucked his chin to his chest and went to find his keys.

"What is it with him?" Dian said after a moment or two. "Why can't he ever think of others?" she rinsed Mei's face, "why is it so difficult for Father to do right by us all?"

Her sister-in-law tried to lift her head to defend Hasaki while Dian quickly dabbed at it.

"He is confused."

They looked up to see Baymax holding the drowzy toddler Huan up to his cheek. With a happy, little yawn, the young boy hugged him back and sucked his thumb. Baymax then gave off a soothing warmth as he gently rocked Huan to sleep, explaining softly:

"It is not that Hasaki Hamada lacks compassion, it is the estrangement of closeness to loved ones and his desire to both help and hold back that combats itself inside of him and causes him to resist you." They blinked at him. "I am like a warm marshmallow."

Mei smiled at Baymax while Dian looked away.

 **II**.

As the people of San Fransoyko bustled along downtown that late March day, they no longer took notice of the oversized white robot with matching cardboard sign standing on the corner of one of the busiest intersecions. He blinked as he lowered and raised the sign depending on the height of the passerby, making well sure they could see it.

In bold marker, it read: **Lost boy, aged 15. Disappeared around Mt. Satsuki on November 15th of last year. Hiro Hamada. Suffers from PTSD.** Baymax would then display an aged rendering of the "boy" on his chest; a man noticed this with real discomfort as he walked towards the nursebot in a sweatshirt, jeans and baseball cap.

"Hello, Hasaki." Baymax greeted him in a personable tone.

With a little growl, Hasaki pulled down on the baseball cap. "Are you sure there isn't anymore possible places where Yu-know-who is I can suggest or some other info...?"

"I must take my routine aerial patrol and there is still twenty minutes of groundwork left to cover," The robot handed him his homemade sign and bestowed a tablet which was running the same program on his chest. "After this, you will be heading uptown."

"I'm not used to this," he muttered, taking the items. "And what if Mei needs me...?"

"One of the team will alert you." Baymax told him, then paused. "Your anxiety levels have risen. If you are in emotional pain, perhaps I can scan for-," The two watched as an unknown figure zoomed overhead and flew uptown. "I will now leave to intercept."

"Wait!" Hasaki held out his hand to stop him.

"You require my help." Baymax said.

He lowered his arm when the robot didn't dismiss him to go on his mission. "It's... not that entirely. It's more of why you're doing this. I mean I understand, but, the lengths you're willing to go. I've never seen anyone in our family do this, or even other people for that matter..." Hasaki paid no attention to the stares he garnered. "And even when I helped six months earlier, when you were enormous and I hadn't seen Cassandra..."

His words ceased as he realized, again, that he couldn't formulate a point.

"We help others because they are in need." Baymax said before he waddled off.

Hasaki considered this a moment.

"Thank you again for the linguistics training you have been teaching me." He caught the robot's eye. "I was able to verbalize a meaningful answer last night to both girls."

The man nodded once as he watched Baymax turn to walk halfway down the street.

"Wait!" He sprinted after him and caught his arm. "I have a hunch about something."

"Hasaki?"

"Call me crazy, but I do."

"I have scanned your mind before, there is no need for a mental eval-,"

He shook his head hard. "Just trust me on this. You go after whoever that renegade is up there, I'll take care of all this _including_ my groundwork." Hasaki smiled confidently.

Baymax blinked and tilted his head.

"Just leave this to the only genius left in the family," He tapped his temple as a point.

...

A dark figure swooped along the tall buildings of the sunny, but chilly Spring day. The wide windows reflected the sleek, black outerwear over and over until he noticed. With a small tap to the side of his helmet, the visor went up and Hiro blinked at himself. It had been a while since he had done this and the familiarity of it made him smile. All of the confidence bursting inside caused him to grin and he switched around mid-air just at the the end of the building. Hiro felt the wind on his face as he embraced the rush.

He removed his helmet altogether to take in all the dizzying freedom that came with taking his new suit for a spin. Ususally, Hiro was gone on intel missions or caught up with some invention or another; this was the first time he was flying solo. Literally! He forgot all about the fact that the team was out patrolling today. The team. Hiro turned toward the place where they were relaying infomation a mile and a half away now. He arrived and spotted the four from an awning. Smirking, Hiro plopped down his helmet.

They were finishing up lunch at a little bistro when suddenly Fred's beanie flipped onto his nose. GoGo snickered, but then found her gum removed and stuck in the middle of Honey's forehead. Wasabi scratched at his dreadlocks, then felt something prickly in them. He wrinkled his broad nose as he pulled out a wasabi and held it out accusingly.

The team looked around at each other in confusion.

Hiro could barely conceal his laughter as they frowned, paid their waiter and left. The teen watched for another moment and was still smiling when he turned to leave... he then heard them mention his name. His brows went up and he turned his cloaking off as he listened to them move on from mission information to how much they missed him. He let his head fall forward at this and was ready to move away from the awning when something big, solid and... and broad-shouldered was flying directly toward him.

He blinked, tensed, then relaxed a little as he realized his auto-cloaking was on.

By the time Hiro looked down the others were gone and Baymax flew by. Exhale.

The teen took flight in the other direction.

...

Baymax continued into a low bank around the corner before tilting his left wing to stir up. As was often the case, he looked over his shoulder and saw no one. Normal... But it wasn't the way it should. Something undetectable to the eye, almost utterly silent as it went by, caught his attention. Baymax scanned but nothing happened; it was going much too fast. He blinked as not much was faster then him in air, then pursued along.

His signal started jamming as he followed the slight ripple of the sun on the figure. As he followed, he put two-and-two together that this was the same thing that happened when Dian used to work for Shou Yu. Baymax's afterburners flared up and whoever or _whatever_ it was seemed to glance back at him. In immediate reaction, the figure sped up. Baymax blinked; it was his job to protect the city... and this included unauthorized aircraft. Just as the figure was making a speedy pass for the next building to try losing his dodged pursuer, a glowing, gyrating object shot up and cut off his hurried escape.

The cloaking vanished and the figure appeared distressed, Baymax noted.

"All right, who you are?" GoGo asked firmly while perched on her rotating magnets.

Like many before it, the figure looked up to assess another escape route only to see Honey and Wasabi looking down at it. When it tried for below, it's original assailants moved in closer. The figure lifted it's fists to defend and Baymax showed it his hands.

"We are not here to threaten or harm you; I spotted you while on my aerial patrol."

Unseen eyes looked at him under the darkened visor of the helmet... knowing eyes.

Baymax felt something familiar but couldn't place it, so he tried again:

"If you could tell us your intentions..."

The figure half-turned and then made a break for it to the West.

"Did _that_ tell you his intentions?" GoGo asked him.

"Perhaps he prefers showing to telling," The robot gave his head a pat.

...

Hiro was panting furiously inside his suit; He literally had raised the visor up to allow enough air in. How... how in name of all sanity did Baymax _see him?!_ He knew going into the city was a mistake. But he figured, since he often slipped into old stores and haunts he'd loved before his hero days, he'd be safe. Hiro was wrong. His eyes were dry and red from the lapping wind but his heart had swelled up into his throat in guilt, frustration and emotion. He shook his head violently. No. They were the ones at fault.

 _They_ were the ones who had kept secrets. Hiro had made the decision to stay away so he could live his own life; and as long as he did the intermittent task Shou Yu gave to him, Hiro was free to do what he wanted. He could even see his family and friends if it was in between assignments! Maybe a lot of it was illegal, but nothing asked of him in the past had led to anyone getting hurt and the _freedom_ of it... Hiro was nearly to the end of San Fransoyko. He was close to leaving and never returning... to Aunt Cass or-

Before the name could seep in, Hiro sped up towards the Golden Gate Bridge.

Almost...

"Hiroto," The man's voice was as calm and ordinary as it always was; as plain as if he were right there with Hiro even if they'd only met once. "You have a new assignment."

It felt like the cold wind had settled into his stomach.

"As with most arrangments such as this, it is time to test your loyality."

"I... um-,"

"Now, now, I'm not asking you to harm or threaten anyone. It's not like this is the first time I've uprooted you, Hiro, or been the catalyst for your uprooting." Hesistation was heavy. "China...? For five months. And these last five months. What's one more task?"

"And than I can leave?" Hiro slowly grasped his uncle's control over him.

"Not just yet. This task will be your shortest; a week at most. Then a nice proposal."

To be continued...


	14. Where we finally are: Pt 2 of 2

**I**.

Hiro nervously hovered before the very bridge both he and Baymax had taken their first flight together. It was mid-day but he could still picture the robot plunging into the air and him screaming at the top of his lungs; he smiled, golden eyes softening.

"Stop," GoGo's harsh voice cut him off, cut into his heart.

But he'd asked for this.

Wasabi was next: "Just turn around slowly and tell us what you're doing here."

Hiro did as he was told.

His former team collected on top of Baymax... except for GoGo, Hiro noted.

"Why are you here?" Honey reiterated much more clearly and directly than usual.

The teen thought; should he disguise his voice? Try to fight them...?

Tell them the truth?

"We require a response or will be obligated to ask you to leave." Baymax told him.

Hiro's eyes shifted over to see Fred steal a look with Wasabi, then shot back off for the harbor. There wasn't a collective groan; the team was right on his tail. Hiro let out one of his own when he felt an odd vibration on his forearm and glanced down to see what it was. GoGo was suddenly in front of him with Fred hopping onto one of her disks behind him. The lizard-suited man started to pull out a small, CF device that resembled a Chinese fingertrap when Hiro grabbed his arm and flung him over.

GoGo gasped as Fredzilla pilled onto her, allowing Hiro to make his-,

Wasabi appeared from nowhere and tried to entrap him in a laser-armed hold. The teen deftly plunged his two fingers each into the arm release on the man's suit and the lasers spluttered off, causing him to fall with a scream. As Baymax dove so as to retrieve him, Honey leapt off and tried spiking a few chem balls at their attacker.

Hiro was able to dodge them all and turn to elude them when one caught his ankle. It put him off balance and was so heavy it dragged him down. Hiro unsheathed a thin, plasma-induced laser of his own to chip away at his bind when he saw to his immense horror Baymax plunging back up to grab him; his forearm pricked again.

He looked at it in surprise but had to double-around as Baymax freed his leg, then tried to take hold of him. Hiro let out a small gasp and took off back toward the city with the robot in hot pursuit. His forearm sent a course of needle-like shock up his shoulder. What?! Was something wrong with his suit? Baymax was nearly on Hiro.

Thinking fast, Hiro put out his arms and made the risky move of spinning around so he could quickly fly under Baymax for another emergency escape. Hiro then noticed the auto-cloaking was off; he was totally confused and pressed down on his helmet.

"What's going on?!" Hiro all but yelped. "Why is my suit acting up!?"

"You have an order." Came the grizzly response.

And in that instance, everything he needed to know fell on him like a heavy robot.

"You have until sunrise tomorrow to complete your mission."

...

Baymax cut off his pursuit of the flier just as rest of the team came to stand on the large skyscrapers around him. He blinked and looked to assess all of them but they were just as confused as he was. There was a blip on the city's screens and Hiro, in a S.F.I.T hoodie and longer, shaggier hair than 5 months earlier, featured on them.

...

Hiro was breathing hard, almost choking on the emotion in his throat inside of the alley he hid in like the coward he was. Seeing his friends, and Baymax, and feeling betrayal... no, _real_ betrayal. His uncle had lied. Hiro was still panting, knowing that his friends must have been trying to protect him all along, when he looked outside.

No one.

He clutched onto his arms and wished desperately that Baymax was there. Or...

The teen clutched at his forearm and gasped. Anger filled his face and he let out his breath in a hiss. With the extra strength in his dark, CF suit, Hiro grabbed at it with purpose and tried to pry it off of himself. The result was a wave of prickling pain in all it's thin, driving agony coursing through his body. Hiro screamed and collapsed.

He panted hard again as he body hit the wall, feeling paralyzed. How could he have done this? To his family? Something familiar was flying towards him from overhead in the distance. Hiro quickly realized the problem, slipped on his helmet and, for the first time disregarding his usual hangouts, ran for the last place he should really go.

But it was the place he needed the most.

 **II**.

Aunt Cass and Dian washed and dried glasses meticulously as younger customers - people who had cared about Tadashi and Hiro from campus and all of their friends - milled around and complimented on the half-modern, half-cultural atmosphere. All kinds of knick-knacks, pottery and high-resolution pictures of China, Japan, Africa, Spain and many other cultures blended well in the presence of new Ultra HD TVs on all the walls, automated coffee and drink servers and a free Wi-Fi station per table.

The two women looked at each other and smiled ironically when they heard a noise.

"Baymax?" Dian Hamada asked.

"No, if Mei and her new baby were in trouble at the hospital he'd have called."

"But that was too big for Little Huan." Her niece noted, confused.

"I'll be right back," Cassandra grabbed her broom and headed through the back.

...

"Owww!" Hiro grabbed at his foot after hitting it against a large bookcase he didn't remember being there. He gasped a little when he looked around, not just from a lack of Baymax responding, but at the den-looking appearance of his room. Where his bed had been, a red-leather couch sat. Hiro stepped away and saw his brother's side of the room still had the picture of their mom and the tatami mat. He spun in a slow circle, seeing family pictures from downstairs on his walls. Even the nice little tables Baymax had made were neatly arranged in the far corner, Hiro saw in shock.

The only thing of his that remained was the giant clock off to the side and Baymax's old charger. Just in case? He wondered. The teen took slow, heavy steps backwards for the window. Shadows he had never seen before fell from the alcove eaves, cast over his and Tadashi's old room until they engulfed everything he had once known.

Hiro plopped his helmet back down and leapt out the window as Cassanda stepped in. She looked around the dark interior, blinking around at all the memories she'd put in here but never revisited. Aunt Cass spied the opened window, like it always had been when Hiro would sneak in and out, took a deep breath and shut the door.

...

A few, colorful bears scattered across the floor of a room that put Fred's own nerd cave to shame. Hiro blinked down listlessly at the extreme chocolate, gummy bear parfait in his hand. He didn't pay any attention to his neural-crane, gyro chair which was barely spinning him in accordance to his half-hearted thoughts. Hiro didn't care about the fact that he floated in mid-air in his low-gravity room or any of the other many, gimmicky inventions he had made. All he saw was his friends, his aunt and...

The teen touched the controller on his wrist to restore gravity and lowered his gyro chair telepathically. This emptiness wouldn't leave him. He got up and entered into his room through the connecting door. Hiro then came to stand before the window that overlooked the mountains. Knowing that he had to complete his mission before dawn, the teen gathered his suit strewn haphazardly on the ground before heading out and back towards the city. In his interior-lit helmet, Hiro glanced at down Mt. Satsuki.

It had been a while since he had bothered but since he lived less then twenty miles he slowed to look at it. Everything was especially black over the valley he and his Uncle Hasaki had trained together. The river they had swam in was caked in ash and mud.

Hiro closed his eyes when he remembered thinking of him as Tadashi...

San Fransokyo was another twenty miles and it'd take him three minutes.

He was nearing the peaks of a mountain range when something was flying towards him in the lighter grey of the sky. At first Hiro thought that it was too much of a coincidence to be him, but as the familiar form drew nearer there was little doubt in his mind who it was; He could have fainted.

And he probably would have if the rest of the team weren't coming at him using the peaks as they did to advance faster. Hiro's innate selfish streak kicked in and he used that automatic reflex to his advantage to try and lose them again, seemingly forgetting about their friendship entirely in his vain attempt to save himself.

But this time there would be no escape; his old team made sure of this. Though none of them by themselves were aerial except for him, Baymax, and GoGo, they were able to stand on GoGo's rotating disks while GoGo herself was on Baymax. She addressed him.

"There's no escaping this time." Her and Baymax flanked an invisible space.

"We know about the cranial controller you bought illegally," Honey-Lemon told Hiro.

 _For my custom gyro chair?_ Hiro thought, but he guessed at what they meant.

"And we know you have, Hiro." Wasabi sounded angered. _Whoa, they think I'm Hua!_

There was no particular animosity between them, but they-,

Fred grabbed Hiro in a surprise hold and wrangled him back, determined now instead of just his usual gung-ho self. But Hiro wasn't who he used to be, either. He made a straight jab right for his old friend's side and was granted a release... Fred was impossibly ticklish and he grasped at it. Hiro grinned but had to dodge quickly to avoid chem balls aimed at his arms and legs. He used the cloud of pink and yellow to avoid Wasabi's quick ambush.

This in itself was an ambush.

GoGo and Baymax caught both his arms and were able to force him back.

He tried not to look at the familiar, black eyes.

"Who are you?!" GoGo's own orange-yellow eyes burned like they had once before.

Like back at the pro-botting circuit! Wait, did she-? Was she going to tell him about his-,

"Who are you?" Wasabi demanded as he, Honey and Fred appeared behind them.

"Baymax, the mask." GoGo directed, matter-of-fact.

It wasn't much of a distraction, but Hiro took it. He kicked at her feet to unbalance her and in the surprise of Baymax getting her, he tried to flee. The others went after Hiro in which he responded the only way he could escape... by deliberately turning off his rocket boosters. They didn't have time to react to this but someone did; Hiro was just about to right himself up when a spinning disk hit one of his feet to stop his faux fall. Predictably Hiro was able to wobbly land on the mud, and even more so was the result:

The mission was compromised and Hiro was going to have to face his old team...

His old friends.

 **III**.

Mei cradled her new son while her father and Little Huan were taking care of matters to discharge her. Suddenly, there was a small peck at the window. She looked up to see but all she glimpsed was the bright neon glow mostly obscured by the big, dark curtains. The seventeen-year-old was about to shrug it off when someone appeared over in the corner.

She gave a little gasp, holding her sleeping baby close, but didn't scream.

Slowly, the person moved from the shadows and walked into the light shaft from the hall.

"Hello, Meikomo." A dark-suited but maskless Hua approached her.

"Ohhh," She blinked. "Black? You said black was bad for first appearances." The girl gave her head a shake. "Hua. Oh my word, you were on the news. So, what've you been up-?"

Hua snapped at her in Mandrin.

"Hua!" Mei tried to calm him.

But he told her angrily that she had forgotten her place, to which she bowed her head.

"I'm sorry. I-I was just...?

"I have come to see my new son, Mei." He indicated the small, sleeping child. The man used his arm instead of his hand and she wondered why. "You are obligated to do this."

"And you have not seen your first son in two years," Mei told him, then gasped.

She had said this out loud!

"Why you..." Hua started to growl. "Have you forgotten your place!? MY role in your life. I could leave you for two, no, TWENTY years and it would make no difference what I was doing or where I had been. You are to hold your tongue, _be. obedient._ , or suffer a very-,"

"Hua," The voice was familiar even if the tone was much sharper then he remembered.

" _Uncle_ Hasaki," Hua, who looked incredibly like Hasaki, mocked his father.

The man wilted a little at the red, piercing eyes in his son's face.

"Hua," Hasaki softened his voice. "It doesn't have to be this way anymore." He took Mei's hand. "You can come back, just Dian did. Just like I did." Something flickered in the hard eyes staring directly, accusingly, into his. "They'll protect us and I'll do the same." Hasaki raised his hand and stepped towards his son. "I'm sorry, wǒde érz. For all of your pain."

He saw the young man relent a bit.

"I want you to come back," The man almost reached him. "But please, where is Hiro?"

"Hiro!" Hua spat the name like acid and jerked back. "Shou's new heir."

Hasaki's eyes widened a little, but he kept calm and tried to touch his son's shoulder.

"Huey, it's all right." He choked on the nickname. "It's all right. I know it's been horrible these last ten years. But please..." His son jerked away and stepped back to the window.

"That's right, _Dad_. Shou Yu wants Hiro as an heir and is grooming him as such." His eyes switched to Mei's horrified ones. "What is more, I was instructed to come for this young boy." He flashed Hasaki an evil grin. "Just in case." At this, the older man stepped over.

Hasaki blocked his grandson from view even though he knew Hua could kill him. An old daring was in the forty-year-old's eyes that had not been there since Taku was alive; a strength that even Hua couldn't comprehend. He climbed out of the window, hard-eyed.

"Keep him then. I won't be punished this time." A dark humor edged his face. "All both of you are doing is putting Hiroto at risk. But fine, keep my rightful son and heir from me."

When he left, Meikomo asked Hasaki if they should be afraid.

"No," He answered. "I'm done being afraid. If anyone can save the day, it's Big Hero 6."

She then asked if Hiro would do something he would regret.

"Maybe." Hasaki admitted. "But Baymax will get through to him... I know he will."

...

"Your mission." Shou reminded him flatly.

"I can't," Hiro said as he telepathically inverted the sound waves, stepping back.

His team surrounded him and advanced slowly... as if trying not to startle him.

There was a pause, then.

"Last chance," GoGo pointed her disk at him. The team looked at her unveiled threat in surprise, but only Baymax poised as if he would intercept. "Who are you?"

He continued to edge back across the dark earth.

The more dreaded of the two voices spoke,

"I don't suppose you've heard rumors of what happens to those who refuse me?"

"Tell us!" The orange in GoGo's eyes burned.

"Wait..." Hiro said suddenly. He understood this fire.

"Do you know what will happen to your loved ones, Hiro?"

"Where is he?!" Her eyes filmed.

"Hiro?" Shou's voice grew dangerous.

This fire in the young woman's eyes was like lava... like the EXPLOSION!

He reacted and ran. GoGo cut him off and delivered a swift uppercut to his helmet.

Everything was static and sparks.

The team moved in to apprehend him but in that moment Hiro did what had to be done as well. He went into a split on the mud, grabbed two big handfuls, then used the unexpected moment to throw it into Wasabi and Fred's eyes. He hopped up and ran for Baymax when Honey caught and tackled him down. Ruefully, Hiro grabbed a big glob and mushed it into her hair. He then ran up to a perplexed Baymax, slid on his belly under the robot's legs and then hopped up onto his back to get to his port.

GoGo pried him off with ease and swung at him again. Hiro tried to fight back even though he subconsciously tried to edge closer to Baymax again. This ticked her off and she delivered a fisted blow that connected to his head again, sending him back.

"The only way to get an answer out of this guy is to fight," she declared, blocking a low kick and shoving him back. Baymax tried to protest but the team realized what she meant when she tried to push the stranger away from him. "Let's do this then."

But only she went after him.

Hiro tried to fight her but whenever he looked up she nailed him. One sharp bash in particular sent him six feet from her blow. Baymax called out that this violence was unnecessary and for "Hiro" to stay down, but, he didn't _say_ his name. GoGo ran out of steam then and Honey-Lemon looked at her friends hesitantly before going over.

"Wait," The woman held out a hand to stop her.

"What are you doing?" Hiro heard the dark dragon's voice in his head.

His mind and eyes sharpened; he heard it even with the communicator busted.

"I have an idea..." Hiro disregarded Baymax's warnings, "just-,"

GoGo was on him again, but somehow he saw Tadashi.

Hiro felt the fury with which she swung and reeled away at the last moment. There was a quick breath of surprise, then she came with her knee at him to his stomach. He sucked in his gut by concentrating on her intake of breath before seeing in time her swing again on the exhale. Their eyes locked and she started to intensify it up.

Suddenly, lessons Hiro and Tadashi used to practice together came back... as well as something else. Hiro moved in tandem with her now. He didn't fight, but merely moved in time with her. The team watched a moment longer before jumping in and trying to assist. Hiro used his capable mind to broaden the scope of attacks coming at him and even used his feet to avoid them. Every laser jab, chem ball, memory of how his team attacked... and they started to notice, too. Hiro cut off the avoidance tactics and kicked one last chem ball in that moment of recognition as the sun set.

As it spread in pink with a smoke screen effect, Hiro ran up to Baymax. GoGo sliced through it easily and started searching. The teen saw Baymax scanning the smoke for everyone before setting his own sights on the unguarded port drive. Hiro's heart was racing, he even felt a helpful boost up as if someone had placed their big hands down for him. A quick punch, swipe and Hiro could hit the - something caught him.

His breath hitched and he looked down in horror to see Baymax holding him up.

The rest of the team emerged from the evaporating smoke at this welcome sight.

But Hiro, he shook in fear while staring into the eyes of his large captor. No, no this wasn't right. This was _Baymax!_ Hiro shouldn't be afraid at all. But... Hiro unwillingly saw his helmet's reflection in Baymax's glass one and looked away. The robot tried to get a good angle to really look at him and Hiro felt his friend's hands become like shackles on his waist. He heard his team approaching from behind and did the only thing he could think of; Hiro kicked at the emergency release on Baymax's big arm.

Immediately it tried to dislodge itself from it's wearer, to which the wearer resisted.

The team kept their distance as the arm sporadically went out of control. Hiro, who was all too grateful for the distraction, leapt down as soon as Baymax tried getting control over his berserking arm, simply jogging off. GoGo was ready to give chase.

She would have had the advantage and now the rightful motivation to do so.

"You must stay back," Baymax informed her, in the rare instance of a command.

"I can fly." She shot back.

"Then go," Wasabi told her, "Me, Fred and Honey have this. Don't let-,"

A piece of Baymax's armor narrowly missed hitting him and even Hiro stopped.

"Go!" He shouted anyways.

Hiro saw the robot struggling in vain to keep the arm in place... from hitting all of his friends. Tightening his hands into fists, Hiro decidedly bee-lined for Baymax's back. GoGo yelled that he was a coward before Fred and Honey had to restrain her.

Wasabi also put himself in front of them, straightening out his arms.

The black-suited teen hopped up on Baymax like an expert, to which the robot only caught a glimpse of in his piece-exploding attempt to keep himself together, and in one, two-fingered jab had the arm release locked back into place. The autopilot was overridden. Everyone took that next few moments to catch their breath and Hiro on Baymax's back felt whole once again; he was fourteen, and small, and Baymax was his - the robot glanced back at him and Hiro tumbled off into a half-tripping retreat.

Fear shook inside of him as Baymax 2.0 looked at him, but it wasn't the fear of the villain looking into his soul. No. This fear was from the _hero_ , part Tadashi, part his old self, all that he was no longer, looking into the eyes of a common no-good. The very thing Hiro thought he had beat long ago and would never be - " _Hiro_." A voice said, stopping him. He knew it wasn't Shou. but complied. Hiro met Baymax's eyes.

...

The robot looked at the suited person in front of him, unmoving. Curiously, Baymax noted the height measurements of this person and Hua were different. No one that Big Hero 6 had fought before matched that height. He then tried to scan the person again, to which whoever it was took a step back as the robot's glasswear flashed a brief blue. Baymax noted this and the person lowered his head in possible irritation.

Something sparked.

...

Hiro watched his brother's robot try in vain to scan him and started to leave when he saw a large hand open up to him. His eyes widen in the shadows of the helmet he wore. All the grey of dusk couldn't darken this moment as Hiro looked down at this unexpected offer. His fist clenched behind him and he tried... he tried to reach his hand out to Baymax. But... _but...!_ If Hiro did this, everyone could be killed and he... he couldn't go back. Hiro looked with pained refusal at Baymax, his saddened eyes pricking. He took a few more steps back and recovered what was beside him.

His rocket boot.

With a quick snap, Hiro bolted like a rocket back for the city.

...

This time, no one pursued him.

To be continued...


	15. Will you always remember me?

**I**.

 _Night, San Fransokyo..._

Hiro's gut was as cold as the water he scooped up and sipped from. It was around seven and the fifteen-year-old knelt by the river that ran not far from campus, and having in a stroke of luck removed his gloves, was taking a minute to recompose himself. As the moments of tension passed and finally he looked at himself in the neon cast reflection, the teen was forced to face what he had knew to be the truth:

This was all his fault.

Yet somehow, even seeing his acknowledging eyes, Hiro didn't hate himself.

It wasn't like he hadn't thought of going back, but it would be so strange. Hiroto he was not. The leader of Big Hero 6 he was no longer and Tadashi's brother was not the same. He looked at his arm and knew what had to be done. As his eyes closed and his hand balled into a fist at this, Hiro heard a soft thud on the grass near him.

He straightened up.

No. _No_ he had to do this on **his terms.**

Forgoing his own self-revelations, Hiro turned to face the large robot watching him.

...

A nondescript truck drove up to the police station. Two men wearing pro-botting swag jumped down and met with four members of Big Hero 6, a Federal agent, a lawyer and a few officers outside the lit building. Ha-Jun held out some new intel sheepishly, while Ji-Min looked out impassively out onto the street to avoid GoGo.

"Fresh off the press," he grinned.

Wasabi smiled and started to take the manila file when the Fed beat him to it.

The team looked with stricken expressions as he quickly went over the papers.

Honey Lemon implored Ha-Jun with her eyes. _Was Hiro at a pro-bot match? Was he_ ever _-?_ The twenty-year-old nodded his head solemnly. All eyes widened at this and someone moved a part from the group. This whole time! Hiro had been _free to go-!_

"This doesn't mean that your friend is necessarily acting of his own free volition."

The lawyer's suggestion of all things.

The team nodded to themselves and Ha-Jun asked what more he could do to help.

Ji-Min calmly noted that GoGo was gone.

Everyone looked in the direction of her glowing, speeding form.

...

Baymax... Hiro saw that the robot was totally alone. He softened at this sight and stood with elated disbelief at him. Baymax just stood there staring back. There was an ambivalence to the robot even as he looked Hiro over from head-to-toe; he had grown nearly three inches, was physically in one piece and neurotransmitter levels were high. So then, why had he tried evading them? Why had he resorted to such-?

Hiro held his arms out and started approaching him.

The robot stepped back.

"Baymax," he took off the rest of his brutalized helmet, "It's just me."

"It was always you," Baymax said with what was almost regret.

Hiro stopped. His brows went up to where his shaggy hair used to be.

"Baymax-," He held his arms out again. "I'm... I'm okay."

"Your attempts to escape nearly resulted in the elimination of our team."

Now he really stopped. Baymax wasn't accusing him, he was stating a fact.

A fact that still resonated with alarm and made the teen re-think Baymax's words.

"Don't you care about where I've been?" Hiro tried shifting things back to him.

Baymax removed his chest cavity and showed Hiro the aged progression of himself.

" _What...?_ "

"I looked for you every day." The robot met his eyes. "I am sure of the control Yu has over you, as he had over Hasaki, Hua, Dian and Meikomo." He told Hiro slowly.

"So why are you treating me like a criminal? I have a right to be in San Fransokyo."

"You are an endangered minor, Hiro."

"I'm your _leader_ , Baymax." He made use of his new height.

Baymax blinked. "Hiro, I attempted to offer assistance to you before. I have looked for you for months now, but, I cannot overlook the string of crimes you have been helping Shou Yu commit." He straightened his shoulders. "Also, I concede that you have been unable to escape Yu's control, but having placed our friends in danger by fleeing from us and acting with reckless abandonment, you have further justified all our concerns for your safety and well-being." He compounded this by taking a step.

"What are you doing?!" Hiro took one back and eyed him uncertainly.

"I am attempting to subdue you peacefully, so you can receive help."

Hiro skirted back at a clip now. "You're trying to arrest me!"

"Now that I have ascertained your physical state-,"

"Stand down." Hiro ordered him roughly. Baymax straightened at this. "Do as your told." he ordered. "And give me my fighting chip back." he held his hand out for it.

This was Shou Yu's own command.

"Hiro, why do you need this specific chip back?"

"Your place isn't to argue with me," He barked hoarsely. " _Give me_ my chip."

Baymax really looked at Hiro, then concluded:

"You are afraid my duties overshadow our friendship."

Since when did Baymax talk like a movie character?

Hiro took another step back but knew he couldn't escape. "I want my chip back."

Baymax offered him his fist instead. The teen looked at it oddly, seeming hardly to remember what this was, then he looked up into Baymax's face and his expression became what Baymax had felt back on the river. Hiro raised his own fist to tap the robot's when a charge of electrocution broke down his arm and he bared his teeth against the pain, his head went back as he tried not to scream. Baymax grabbed hold of his arm and Hiro saw mocking Hua's face. He remembered that night he'd buried down, like other nights, and remembered the man telling him he was weak.

That everyone looked down on him like a child... that they didn't respect him.

Agonized, Hiro struck Baymax's port with his other fist and tried for the chip.

The robot stared down at him, pleading.

 _Just the fighting chip_. Hiro's eyes pleaded back.

Something fast and yellow struck Hiro's hand away from Baymax's chest, while in nearly the same span of that moment identical projectile hit the band on Hiro's arm and cancelled out the surging pain. Still plucking out the fighting chip, Hiro fell back in relief. He grasped at his arm as he felt the hope of a completed mission and this stupid thing being unable to cause him pain... all very short-lived as he eyes lifted.

Unlike all his other machines, Baymax did _not_ have a fail safe installed in him.

...

Meikomo cracked the door to never-used room open slightly.

"Hello? Aunt Cass?" The seventeen-year-old girl asked. She didn't want to intrude but she couldn't find the woman anywhere and her father wasn't back. Slowly, she let herself into a dark, quiet room with a den-like setting and shadows everywhere.

Her steps brought her into a gradual spin to take in her surroundings when a wall of pictures caught her eye. Meikomo narrowed them and then stepped over to switch the light on the wall on. An entire history of the Hamada/Yuri family lit up for her in that instant. Uncles, aunts, close friends and grandparents, and... and a family. She walked closer and saw a pregnant woman that looked so much like Aunt Cassandra.

There was a man who looked so surprisingly like her father-in-law.

Then... a young boy. Meikomo laid her hand down on Hiroto's older brother in the picture. Why... why couldn't Hiroshi's birth been like this? With Little Huan standing off to the side while his "involved" father Hua stood proudly at her side, holding her hand. Mei's head fell forward and tears trailed down her cheeks as she realized that _this_ was how a family should be, how this was what everyone wanted, how painful-,

"I'm not negating the importance of family history," Dian suddenly appeared in the doorway. "But being a spy in my profession... and sneaking around isn't your style, typically." she walked in now after having just laid both her second cousins to bed.

"Look at this." Mei said to her, pointing. " _So. much._ family history is in here."

"So much lost," Dian was less optimistic.

"I thought I understood before, but I didn't!"

"Mei?"

"Dian!" She grabbed the taller woman's shoulders. "You've got to go out there and help them... or, or I will!" As she started for the locked window, Dian stopped her.

She gave a hard breath. "All right," the woman conceded reluctantly, "All right."

Mei's eyes grew hopeful.

"If you'll stay here, I will go find Big Hero 6 and assist them in trying to save Hiro."

There was a short pause.

"And Hua?" Mei suggested quietly.

Dian was already dressed down in dark clothes; as if she'd been prepared for this.

But she kept her back to her sister. "No," she determined to the girl. "He made his choice long ago, there is no rescuing him." With that, she slipped off into the night.

The door to the room opened slightly more.

"She's going to help her father and the others?" Aunt Cass came in with Little Huan and Hiroshi cradled in her arms. Mei turned to her with a big smile and nodded this.

...

"Maxie..." Hiro stumbled back on his hands and feet. Red eyes, vibrant and violent in the night and growing river mist, advanced on him in the mindless machine he'd accidentally awakened. But wait... the yellow chip shouldn't made Baymax like this.

" _Hiro!_ " The fifteen-year-old turned to see the look of fear in GoGo's face.

She didn't look angry at him anymore, she looked terrified.

Hiro turned back to the robot lumbering intently towards him and then down at the hodge-podge, blue-and-green chip in his hand. He looked back up and realized that the enraged stare directed at him was still _Baymax_. This chip wasn't made with just fighting in mind, this yellow chip had been made by Hiro for Baymax to be a hero... because Hiro loved Baymax. He had hoped that knowing this would remind Baymax of that... no, it was Hiro who needed it. The crimson-eyed robot leered down at him and he stared up at Baymax. This reaction coming out of his friend was pure anger.

Slowly, so he wouldn't startle him, Hiro held the blue-green chip up to Baymax.

The robot looked at his offer, back at Hiro, then lifted his fist back.

GoGo caught Hiro seconds before he made contact and held onto him in a vice grip.

Honey grabbed the chip and Baymax looked around in confusion as both Fred and Wasabi came to his sides. Hasaki and GoGo's cousins arrived along with police and a few other people. Hiro shrank back into GoGo's arms and they went around him.

He was going to jail... Hiro was everything the team took down; a thief, a liar...

Baymax was right: Hiro _had_ almost eliminated them.

...

The phone rang and Cassandra looked up tiredly at the spin dial on the wall. Hiroshi and Little Huan were both in bed, Mei was in no condition to move around and she just couldn't call the team away from their work. But where was Hasaki and Dian?

She gave a little moan as she pushed herself up from the booth table and picked up with a wise crack on her tongue about phonebooks or cell phones. The voice on the phone was the man who was in charge of her missing nephew's case; he was calm:

"Hiro has been located."

Her legs gave out and Cassandra's back hit the scenery-framed wall.

"He's... alive?" She clutched the phone, whispering tightly.

"Yes," he told her. "But it's a very tenuous situation, as I understand it."

She blinked back tears and anger clenched her throat. "Shou Yu?" she spat out.

He took a deep breath. "Yes, Ma'am. As of right now our officers and Big Hero 6 are trying to contain the situation. We'll... phone back once there's more to-," Dead air.

Cassandra was out the door before remembering Mei and the kids, she then ran up the stairs to lock all the windows and turn on the security system Wasabi and GoGo had installed. No one was getting into Baba's home again unless Cassandra said so.

Even her own nephew.

But, she loved him more than life and would rather die then never see him again.

...

GoGo hugged him. She held the teen who now nearly cleared her height. This was not the reaction he thought he would get. He'd expected handcuffs, and shouting, and more of the same accusations as Baymax had admonished. But not all of this.

Not this _mothering_.

Angered, Hiro broke out of her hold with a fierceness that made her sharpen again.

Her eyes were betrayed and he perversely enjoyed this.

"Hiro..." Wasabi came forth first. "What is going on? What are you... doing?!"

"Whatever the hell I wanna do." Hiro met his eyes defiantly.

"Híro," Honey Lemon tried.

" _Whenever_ I wanna do it," He turned to her.

She took a step back as Hasaki held off police and Hiro's tense friends.

"You don't mean that, Hiro." The man told him.

"Uncle Hasaki?" Hiro held himself up a little higher, rolling back his shoulders.

"Son, listen to me. I _know_ what's going on, Zhizi." He stepped closer and Baymax blinked at him, chip restored, then looked at Hiro who moved his eyes away. "Look, Hiroto. Meet my eyes." He said in the same voice as when he was Hiro's sifu. "What did my brother ask of you..." They both faced each other now, "for your initiation?"

The team looked at each other half-knowingly.

"You knew!" Hiro accused of them, then back to Hasaki. "You knew _all the time_."

"I'm sorry, Hiro." He nearly pleaded.

And a different memory came now. The team was back with Hiro facing Callaghan, Hiro was trying to make him face fault and he accepted none. GoGo laid a hand on his arm and he turned quickly remembering her there. She looked at him pityingly.

"I was going to tell you." Her entire being was tired.

Hiro shook his head slightly. "I trusted you." he said.

" _We_ trusted you," Wasabi told him.

They all turned to the man and no one could deny that truth.

"You're not taking me in..." Hiro backed away.

Some life came back into GoGo's eyes and voice. "Yes we are," she said certainly.

"You _can't_." He turned to his uncle.

"They _can_." Hasaki refuted what he had once always believed.

"Actually, we can."

One man, and many, many robots developed by Hiro, surrounded them all.

Terror filled their creator's eyes as his family, friends and the police were captured.

"Let them go," Hiro turned quickly to the dark-suited leader.

Somehow, Hua made the sleek, dark suit look so much better.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Hiro." He tapped his forehead. "Not to worry," the deep - seeded wickedness showed in his mad grin, "Uncle will know all about your failure."

"NO!"

"Yes, Hiro," GoGo told him as she punched her fist against Baymax's port drive in passing, yanked out the fighting chip and threw it. "You **aren't** like your brother."

She said as the object landed at his feet.

Hiro's loved ones were taken away.

He turned with fury at Hua. "You ... YOU!"

His cousin easily pushed him aside with a flat-palmed thrust to the chest. Baymax reacted entirely of his own accord at this, twisting wildly in the arms of the dragon - headed machines that looked like Hua's twisted disciples. He strained to look back.

"Hiro!"

The others fought against the robots to try and reach Hiro, too.

Hasaki stared coldly at his son but Hua only sent him a look of reprimand.

"You had this coming," he said roughly, then down to a heart-clutching Hiro, "here's your worthless chip." The man kicked it into his free hand. "You have eleven hours until dawn to save your little team." His head craned. "We'll be up on Krei Tower... don't keep me waiting with your decision, Hiro. Uncle Yu may want you as his heir, but I couldn't care less if I must resort to killing everyone and thing you hold dear."

"I kill you!"

"Will you?"

Hua thrust his elbow into Hiro's neck and made him fall back.

GoGo screamed in rage.

"You're not the only one who studied Martial Arts, Hiroto. Familiar with Dim Mak?"

Hiro squinted up at him painfully. "You lied."

"No," Hua said flatly. "I just twisted the truth to fit my needs... as you do, Hiroto."

Then, they were gone.

The pain was too much for Hiro. He covered his face and laid there for... minutes?

Maybe hours. Hiro didn't know.

But he did know one thing: the dragon was too powerful to beat after all.

To be continued...


	16. Hiro's stand

**I**.

Hiro pressed his hands into the grass beside the bank of the river, casting a long and broken look into the dark water that flowed out into the ocean. He raised his head but couldn't see the bridge or the city; only water and sky. There had seemed out there a great freedom. If his suit could still fly... the corner of his hand touched the chip. Hiro picked it up resentfully and threw it into the river, angered at himself.

He glared down at his reflection to confirm how much he hated his life. The cost of his freedom had been the endangerment of his friends. And now... and now it was over. The one thing that could save them was being carried off into a vast ocean...

And with it his so-called freedom.

Hiro sat cross-legged and looked at his reflection again, this time pensively.

Enough with the revelations! What had Hasaki meant by being able to avoid all of the rocks in the river if you kept moving? Hiro saw his uncle stepping backwards, having to never feel with the stones were, never having to look, always trusting where to lay his foot down. And yet... and yet he'd been captured! Right along with the team. Hiro felt pain well in heart and fill in eyes. How had Hasaki, had _Tadashi_ , trusted themselves in spite of it all?! Knowing they could fail... and then doing just that! The whole team, Baymax, Aunt Cass could face down failure. Hiro...couldn't.

What was so different about him?

Why would he run away when the rest of them would stand?

"Need a net?"

He gasped.

The woman from the plane, one of Yu's henchman, Hasaki's daughter knelt beside him as she cast her net into the riverbed. Hiro remembered how close they were to the harbor and joined her, helping his estranged cousin spread the strong net out.

"There," she smiled, ascertaining the rocks were anchored, "Just as Ba taught me."

Hiro stared at the diamond pattern shifting with the current and then up at her.

"It's...interesting," Dian slid her fingers through them, "I don't even remember how I felt when my father and mother left Hua and me with our uncle. Maybe," her lips tugged up into a tight smile, "Maybe it would have been different if Miss Cass could have been our aunt... or, or maybe it wouldn't really have mattered much anyway."

She saw he was confused.

Her red-brown eyes glistened in the faint glow of the city life.

"I mean... you have grown up in a wonderful home and tragedy still found you. I've grown up in a lavishing but cold and deceptive one. Still, I have found new reasons to move past my traumas," Dian's brows dipped, "Still, it will always be hard to put my feet down where the rocks are, to always know that there will be something or someone trying to stir me in their direction," she looked down at their reflections in the river and slapped in some caught trout, "But I know... I know now my abilities."

Hiro was surprised by her certain smile. "I know I can take all I have learned, and, when I come across the rocks..." she pulled up on the net where the first trout had gotten in and then yanked down so more pilled up in a silver, speckled catch. "That I will not fight them..." she tightened the net closed. "Or force them... I can only-,"

"Move with them," Hiro said.

"It would appear," Dian smiled again and hoisted the net over her shoulder. "We're all having smoked trout tomorrow, Hiroto, please feel free to join in at your aunt's."

He looked at her in disbelief as she hauled her catch away towards the outline of a vehicle in the distance. It was... it was Hasaki's car! Hiro looked down at his hands. He looked down at his feet... at himself, at his shone head and directly out towards the cityscape where Krei Tower was; that's where his family and friends were now.

Hiro clenched his fist with the damaged electric collar on and turned away from his reflection. Dian was calmly putting her catch in the trunk and now stepping around to the driver's seat when she felt a hand touch her arm... and tighten reassuringly.

"I know Baymax must have been the one to give you your freedom."

Dian dipped her head. "No," she turned. "He just opened my eyes to it."

"Can you take me to Krei Tower?"

She smiled and held the keys back. "Baymax also told me the last time you and he were in the proximity of one of my fathers cars," she pointed intently. "I will drive."

"That's fine," Hiro ran around to the other side. "But first," he said when she seated herself. "I'm going to need you to drive me behind my house to the garage, okay?"

Her brows went up. She didn't have the heart to tell him it was locked... that most of his equipment was covered in sheets. Hiro's look was knowing. He knew what he had done and accepted the actions his loved ones had taken in his absence, as well as tonight. Dian nodded at him, understanding all this meant, then started the car.

...

"Can I have like... one last request?"

GoGo groaned so low it was almost a purr.

Wasabi, Honey and her stared out into the neon-lit city as Fred kept yakking on.

"But really!" He unsuccessfully tried prying himself out of the robot's arms. "I am... so into Chinese culture, okay? It's like... you know, so similar to Japanese culture."

Hua visibly paused from pacing at this one. Hasaki stifled his own quiet groan.

The dragon-headed villain turned towards him.

"Hey," Fred flipped his suit's head up. "Not so fast! I have a..." he grew quieter as Hua slowly advanced on him. "Dragon head, that..." Closer still. "Breathes out fire."

Much like when they had met Hasaki months earlier, a voice came out of the head:

"Have you ever heard of The Five Punishments?"

Fred squinted his eyes uncertainly. "Does it have to do with Chinese Finger Traps?"

"No," Hua ripped him from his suit and delivered him back to the cloned robot. "It has to do with the fact that not even _Dà Pì_ will do for you! You will die by your own fire." He tossed the suit at another robot operative and walked away. "By morning."

The blonde teen was sufficiently silenced as his friends looked sadly at him. Then, they turned to Baymax. Even captured and without his fighting chip, he still stared off expectantly to where the sun would rise. The rest of them looked at the ground hopelessly, resigned to their fates. Out into the distance one other person looked to the east with Baymax... Hiro's uncle, Hasaki. The two looked forward together for a fate they would share. And no matter how much Hua looked away, he still seethed.

...

Aunt Cass groaned as she pulled Baymax's tables out into the kitchen, she sighed a little with relief and fear as she hung pictures of her sister, brother-in-law, and... it took her a few moments to look up, of her nephews back up on the wall. Even with months of vacancy, she knew exactly where they went and even at what angle they should be placed. No, in this family you didn't forget your loved ones. You honored them. You protected and shared their memory. Cassandra had nearly forgotten this when Hiro had been abducted and she was determined never to do the same again.

"Aunt Cassie," Two-year-old Little Huan wandered up to the bottom step.

She turned with a kind smile to him; he was so much like Hiro as a toddler.

"Yes? What is it, sweetie?"

"Dere's a man in da gawage," he explained, waiting to see her reaction.

"A-A man in the-? Yeye?" Please be Hasaki, she prayed immensely.

"No, Aunt Cassie, man like small. He is seeing Heer-wo's ma-chine-ses."

Cassandra nearly lost it.

"Is it Uncle Wasabi or Fred with Baymax?"

"No, B-mah. Heer-wo." He seemed to settle on believing the man was his cousin. The toddler spotted a picture of him taken when he was 13. "He is in da gawage."

"What's he doing?" Cassandra asked uncertainly, walking towards the garage door.

"Ma-chine-ses." Little Huan repeated. "Heer-wo seeing his ma-chine-ses."

And with that she remembered months earlier when he had acted like he shouldn't be welcomed in his own home, when he was first really showing signs of PTSD and how Aunt Cass had tried her best to reassure him. Now look at what she had done!

Practically stripped away his entire home and now she was afraid to have him here.

What had she done?!

The little boy gave her arm a gentle pat. "There, there." he told her.

She looked down and saw a little bit of Baymax, of Tadashi, of Hiro in his eyes.

A peaceful smile crossed her face and she picked him up. "Thank you," Cassandra seemed to say to their family as a whole, then carried the boy back to his play pen.

 _But what will I say to him?_ she still wondered, knowing the time would come _._

...

The city lights dimmed, dawn eradiated the east, the sun peaked...

A cruelly satisfied look crawled across Hua's face. "Time," he said in English.

English was best in single syllables; short and meaningful.

"I've changed my mind," the man said to the mostly disheartened, despondent six as he turned around. "I'm not starting with you." Fred lifted his eyes in a resigned glare. "I'm starting with _you_ ," He aimed his arm at Baymax's chest, "And Tadashi's chip." The others instantly fought against their hold while Hasaki looked at his son.

"It doesn't have to be this way," he told him.

"Actually, it-,"

"Everyone," Baymax was calm. They stopped. "Please do not expend your efforts to rescue me from this fate. As with last time, you could all be injured." Hua rolled his eyes under his mask. "I accept my fate, but do not lose faith that all is lost and it-,"

A laser dart catapulted from Hua's arm and struck Baymax through the armor.

"NOOOOOOOO!" GoGo screamed. The others watched, horrified.

Tadashi, Baymax, Hiro... all gone.

"Attack the heart of the pursuit," Hua said quietly, remembering his sister's words.

His slowly closing his fingers would send an electric volt surging down the thin laser wire, electrocuting and effectively destroying this preachy heap in one shot. He was going to win. Shou was going to make him his heir! His father and sister would pay.

Baymax blinked one final time and bowed his head in acceptance.

The others didn't look away this time, they could only watch in stunned defeat.

Even Hasaki.

 _Fooooooooooom!_

They braced as the shock came.

Something thin and light violet cut through the blue wire, spurting it out.

The team watched, immobilized in their shock, as a suited Hiro interposed himself between the six of them and Hua. He held his arm up to be sure the dart and wire fizzled out in all, then lowered it as he stood to face his cousin in his repaired suit.

...

Hua paused a moment, waiting for something.

Hiro's breath caught.

"Where is the chip?" Shou Yu's harsh voice demanded in the repaired helmet.

"I have it," Hiro's own voice was calm. His heart skipped a beat.

"You're lying."

"No." The teen grasped his arm. "I'm not lying. I _do_ have the fighting chip."

His uncle waited.

"Why do you need to keep such a tight hold on me? Even if you can keep someone under your own control, if they don't want to be here willingly..." He heard laughter at the other end and smiled wryly. "So why not let me fight for my freedom, then...

That is, unless you're afraid to lose." The laughter stopped. "Yeah, that's right." He sensed his friends staring in confusion at him from behind; at least, they were his friends once. "Let me fight for our freedom, all of our freedoms." Hiro heard silence as he knew the bargain was forming. "If I lose... I will finish them off all by myself."

Shou Yu chuckled. "You do realize what you're saying..."

"If I win, you let us all go."

His uncle was very patient, "I have nothing to lose." He said in absolute certainty.

Hiro felt the grid around his body disappear.

"All right, then, but if your words are empty, I _**will**_ kill everyone one of them."

The teen's eyes widened a moment but he nodded.

He stood facing his cousin determinedly.

"Hiro," Baymax implored him softly.

Everyone stiffened except for the two:

Hua's fist clenched at his side as Hiro took a short breath, then removed his mask.

"I'm sorry, you guys." He let them see his face. "I'm sorry for everything."

They all were quiet.

"Hiro, do not do this." Baymax told him gently.

"I have to, buddy." He looked his best friend in the eye. "I won't fail you again."

His voice caught on the word 'fail', but he bravely replaced his mask and stood.

"I **_will_** win your freedom."

Hiro and Hua measured one another up before they both charged in.

To be continued...


	17. The heart's eclipse

**I**. 1998 _..._

" _A-plomb!_ "

Sniff.

"Ugh... Cats."

Taku grinned and grabbed his "big" brother in a neck hold.

"Cover your mouth, Ani. That animal shelter was just a test."

Hasaki grinned back and ran his hand under his nose.

"Well," He sniffed vigorously, for it was early Febuary and the brothers were on a mission of great honor; to prepare Hasaki for when he asked out ChiChi's sister...

Again.

"You're overthinking things," His post-graduate brother ruffled his hair and offered him a nano-enhanced tissue. Hasaki smiled proudly at the ordinary-looking object. "If you just slow down and listen to what's around you, you're gonna figure it out."

His younger brother's smile lessened, but his heart swelled.

"Gege," he swiped his nose on it like a 5-year-old, "You're gonna do great things."

"No, that's you, Ani. Across the board!"

The two circled the snowy campus of the Language Arts school where Hasaki was a part-time tutor when they came upon a stocky man leaning on a lamppost, gazing out at the sun-glistened landscape. Both brothers exchanged a look at this rarity... Shou almost never kept in contact with either of them, let alone an in-person meet.

He didn't turn to acknowledge them, even as they approached, he merely stared off into the distance like he was deep in thought. Nothing about him appeared troubled to any casual observer, but his remote concentration left the two brothers cautious.

 _ **Three**_. His look seemed to say at he finally gazed up at them, Brothers.

Hasaki lowered his head a bit. "Nǐ gēgē."

"Hello, Shou." Taku said guardedly, recalling how Hasaki was mirroring their mama the handful of times she, Baba, Yeye or the brothers had even heard from Shou or Hasaki's father's side. Normally, only Taku's father would intervene on a short visit.

The half-brother was ignored. Shou Yu asked a fast question to Hasaki in Mandarin.

Taku lifted a brow at Hasaki but the young man paused from looking over at him.

"Um..."

Shou's eyes lit up violently:

" _Nǐ méiyǒu róngyù?!_ " He demanded.

Hasaki clenched his teeth in despair.

The angry man stalked over to him when Taku intervened.

For the first time, Hasaki's older brothers clashed.

"I don't know what you're saying to him, but this doesn't need to happen here."

Taku indicated some students pausing to look; Shou Yu's glare sent them hurrying.

"Who are you to intervene?" His English was distorted by anger. "Who says you can inter with family and tradition?" He stared daggers at Hasaki and Taku realized that there was more to this than he could fully understand. Something Mama and all of her Chinese blood kin could never explain to Taku or his grudgingly-divorced father.

Shou settled one final look on a submissive Hasaki. " _Tonight_ ," he told him.

Taku watched in bewilderment as the estranged brother took a sharp turn and left.

"Hasaki-," he reached for his ani's shoulder.

"It's best you go wait back home for me," Hasaki's voice hinted at no such plans to do this, but for once he sounded like the older brother he wasn't. "I have to leave."

"No, you don't." Taku argued immediately.

"I have to go, Taku."

"Ani!"

Should he go to the police? Should-?

Hasaki seized his arm and pulled him in quick for a bone-crushing hug. Taku's eyes went wider than saucers at this; if there was one thing you didn't do in this family, the one thing both families seemed to agree upon in some mutual, unspoken way, it was you did not-, Somehow, Taku found his arms around his brother and was all the more confused for it. Hasaki gave him one last squeeze before he darted after their middle brother. The taller yet much more nervy man followed him out of view.

It would be a while before Taku realized this would be the last he ever saw him.

His younger big brother, his Ani, his Hasaki.

 **II**.

The shattering of Hiro's suit was enough to shatter hearts, and minds, as he hit the ground in one full-force blow. Hua had been a black blur, striking the boy upside his upper arm and sending him flying through the air. The man hissed; he'd intended a quick, paralysis-inducing move in one strike, so that Hiro could still watch everyone he loved... Hua spotted the problem; Hiro had arched his body at the last moment so that he _just_ missed the terrible attack, then proceeded to land with a big clatter.

Hua hissed through his teeth again before meeting Hiro's eyes.

"You've lost." There was no satisfaction in his words.

He didn't look at the team staring back at him; they could've been a pile of rocks.

"But I suppose if Tadashi is the heart of your little team, you're it's brain."

Hiro recoiled a little, squinting through his pain.

"Stop," he managed to say, "Please."

Hua shook his head once and aimed for Hiro's forehead.

"I guess braindead will work, too."

...

Hasaki was riddled in anger and frustration when he felt a release of the robot that held him. His eyes popped open and he saw his daughter peering through the crook of the arm. The robot's entire limb fell off and she then moved determinedly for the other robots holding the team; but Dian wouldn't be able to free them fast enough.

...

Hiro looked away.

He readied himself to be-,

It happened so fast he couldn't turn his head in time, only briefly catching sight of a laser cutting through the rising sun. He moved to face forward fully as someone in the glare of morning light slashed something in front of him, causing Hua's eyes to grow wide as he fell to the ground. The laser point directed his face away from the teenager's and Hiro looked up in stunned horror as Hasaki stared back down at him in pain and acknowledgement. He donned his red dragon suit fully and, now totally freed, Big Hero 6 assembled alongside uncle and nephew to face down Hiro's bots.

He lowered his brows at this.

 _My robots_... of course.

A hand extended down to him and Hiro looked up in surprise.

Baymax stood beside him now...

And he offered him his hand in partnership.

True camaraderie gleamed in Hiro's eyes for the time in months, of finally feeling equal again, and he grasped his best friend's hand. The robot hoisted him onto his back and Hiro linked up against it with his own back; where he'd originally intended to place wings of his own. Baymax caught sight of this a moment (disapprovingly?) and then had to concentrate on the onslaught of robots. Hiro faced his own, seeing himself as a target and moved at the same time Baymax flexed his body. Or... or...

Baymax had moved in time to protect Hiro.

"Maxie!"

Baymax missed an uppercut to the face.

They met eye-to-eye.

"You will watch my back..." The robot began slowly.

Hiro grinned widely. "And I'll watch your-,"

Baymax moved in time to deflect an assault directed at Hiro.

"Max, incoming below!"

"Hiro, incline your gaze."

...

Dian watched the melee in utter horror.

Her father, her brother...

The man stood staring down at his son as Big Hero 6 fended off the assaulting bots from harming either. She felt her mouth drop and her cheeks grow cold as he went down on his knees, placed his hand along Hua's neck, then turned away from him.

Dian covered her face.

Slowly, her father rose with his arms full.

He walked over to her and they left together to call the police.

...

"Got your back, buddy!" Hiro exclaimed.

He managed to deflect a beam away with his carbon nanotube-reinforced knee.

"As I have yours!" Baymax bellowed in triumph, knocking away one with his elbow.

Hiro laughed loudly and the two blasted up together to take on the ones overhead.

GoGo noticed this and smiled.

"Everyone, like Hiro and Baymax."

Fred paired up behind her and Honey and Wasabi went back-to-back, too.

As they ascended, three a pair for each level of flying robots, Hiro's eyes widened as he saw the sun. The symbol the dragon had held under his claw... Yin. Yang. A white hand hugging him to his side, his own arm squeezing Baymax to him as his shaggy, black head rested close to him. How Hasaki had tried to explain to Hiro...

He had to move!

The teen steeled.

"Together, Maxie!" His voice was the leader of Big Hero 6,

"EVERYONE!"

They deflected the robots away in pairs, landed, then assembled in a full circle.

Hiro pulled up on his shoulders to detach himself from Baymax and hopped down.

The biggest dark robot walked up to him.

"You've lost," Hiro informed it. "Hua is gone and you are _my_ machines. Stand-,"

It held something out to him and Baymax about-faced to guard Hiro immediately.

Hiro's brows lifted as he held out his own hand and a yellow item was placed in it.

Confused, he looked closer... it was the chip from the river.

"You have won, Hiro." The voice of his uncle spoke, instead of Shou Yu for once.

Hiro was still mystified.

"Your Uncle Hasaki had a mission long ago... a mission I was ordered by my father and grandfather to give to him," He explained as the rest of the team walked up to stand behind their leader. "Of course, Hasaki refused." Understanding struck Hiro's eyes and Baymax touched his shoulder. "That was why you were _whisked_ away to Cassandra, your cousins were offered up as heirs and why your family is no more."

The team came to stand close to Hiro and he looked up in surprise.

"He **does** have a family." GoGo's statement was nothing but truth.

"No matter how much you or anyone tries to take from him," Wasabi crossed arms with GoGo and Baymax to touch his other shoulder. Honey-Lemon flanked his side.

"You will never touch him again." She grasped Hiro's arm.

"Without dealing with _us_ first!" Fred snarled as he grabbed Hiro's other arm.

Grateful didn't begin to cover it.

"You will no longer control another human like a robot, Shou Yu." Baymax told him.

The shiny black robot stared down coldly at Hiro one last time.

"Your freedom is granted. You have your Uncle Hasaki's atonement to thank for it."

With that, the robot led the five remaining of Hiro's former machines away.

Hiro looked out towards the morning with his team, the toned-down fighting chip in his hand that Baymax hadn't needed to protect Hiro still there. He closed his eyes and threw it off of Krei Tower. It fell gleaming as the six of them watched together.

"The boys will be awakening soon," Baymax said in reference to Huan and Hiroshi.

"They're safe?" Hiro asked, but it fell odd to think of himself out of childhood now.

"They're growing," GoGo smiled.

They stood there another moment.

"Tell Aunt Cass I'm sorry." Hiro said, then walked away without another word.

The team watched him, and he knew they wanted to stop him, but not a one did.

Hiro used his telepathic suit feature and took to the sky.

 _One month later..._

The doors to an 8-story, terra-firmed grown and tech-pieced out building opened. It had been around for years, built miles from their old training site, and now a young man in a plain tan robe indicated for the Yu/Hamada Temple patrons to enter into a new building and call it home. They all looked rather quizzically at Hasaki's nephew.

"He'd want you all to have this," Hiro explained and looked into the first floor which was part earthen and part former home. "And I want you guys to have your temple back," he smiled at them. "the ash from the volcano is still fresh here, y'know," He gave a shiver even through the fleece-lined inside," The snow's layered over it too."

The instructors and students smiled back convincingly and headed inside, stopping a moment to bow at the one thing that had survived the destruction of their home. Hiro looked up for a moment at the partly-melted bronze dragon and felt a peace in it's eyes as it gazed back at him. He smiled humbly and bowed to it before leaving.

 **II.**

"Somehow I think the mother should be doing this," GoGo said to Honey, holding Hiroshi up in the air by his wrists as her friend diapered him. She chuckled though.

Honey suppressed a giggle. "Or Baymax," she added.

They both burst out laughing.

"Someone has mentioned my name?" Baymax tried to fit through the nursery but was impeded by the narrow door. Glimpsing this, they howled. Then, remembering how he would frequently get stuck at the lab door, their laughter began to subside.

"We can't let every little thing..." GoGo continued dressing him, trying to be casual.

"I know," Honey said.

They usually helped out once a week with the kids on Sundays when the café was at it's busiest and required Dian and Meikomo to assist Aunt Cass; who frequently offered to pay all four of them, and was frequently met with the same answer: No.

"There is..." Baymax began to say, "Someone downstairs." He blinked.

The women looked up at him in surprise; why would he have to announce that?

"Someone is waiting," He explained as he met their eyes.

...

From beneath a blue ball cap and several layers of jackets, including his tan robe, a young man stared up at the bustling café. People were crammed and still shoving in what he knew was rush hour at the Lucky Cat Café; only, never at 3 PM on a wintry Sunday. Though coffee houses and ramen shops always did, this sight was a new one for him. He lifted the brim of his cap and looked up at one of the windows that were upstairs, thinking he sensed someone watching. There was no one there now.

Hiro drew out a long breath and rubbed his arms ardently.

Before giving his home back to people who deserved it, he'd gone to the one phone in the mountains, a payphone three miles from the six-story building, called up the San Fransokyo Transit Department, gotten an extension on his already expired bus pass, and taken two of them (the few remaining railcars didn't run in winter) and in six hours and forty-two minutes, Hiro had wound up outside the only home he had.

Or, had had.

He debated with himself... just like he always did.

Was it enough that the team wanted him back? What about Aunt Cass?

Hiro's brows arched. What about Uncle Hasaki sitting in...

Tears fell from his eyes as he bowed his head.

 _Nothing_ excused what Hiro had done. Dian was the exception, she hadn't even had control of her life. Hiro had willingly and knowingly done this. He lowered the brim of his hat down as far as it would go; there was a homeless youth center close by...

"Hiro," A familiar voice called out to him, achingly.

He looked up to see his aunt.

She stood at the corner of her front stoop, panting in surprise at the sight of him.

"I-I-I didn't mean ta..."

Aunt Cass, with nothing more than her long-sleeved cobalt shirt on, walked out into the freezing air and right up to the teen. He didn't move or speak, just stared up at her in - Aunt Cass took off his hat, touched his one-inch crop of black hair with a gentle hand, then pulled her nephew into her arms. Hiro hesitated... then wrapped his own arms around her. Baymax had waddled between many curious onlookers to bring both into his arms and activate his heat feature as Hiro felt the tears return...

This time they were the warm, welcome ones of home.

To be continued...

 **A/N** : One last short chapter. :)


	18. You will always be my friend

**I**.

If there was a word that could best describe Hiro's first three days back home...:

Shock.

He was shocked by how much his home had changed, shocked how kindly everyone was treating him... Hiro was even shocked he was back home. There were plenty of times he would shake his head a little and give them a straight look or tell them he wasn't a baby. Or an invalid. There were times he had to hide a smile at their unease.

But, there were plenty of times Hiro was truly unnerved or cheesed off by all of their careful behavior. The way his friends were always unnecessarily sensitive to what Baymax assured them was a normal reaction after a POW-induced experience. And then, how Meikomo would smile uncomfortably across the table at him and even Dian quietly kept her distance, how Aunt Cass was uncharacteristically fussy... even more then when he was first depressed! But what bothered Hiro most of all was Baymax.

He remembered his warm, cuddly best friend's inadvertent goofiness and love for him.

That love was still there, but, something was so different now.

Baymax was always careful with Hiro, which in itself wasn't unusual as everyone was, but that wasn't it entirely. The robot would always knock on the door before entering, he still gave healthcare advice but it always was proceeded by Baymax asking if Hiro wanted it, and, even though no one brought up missions, it still hurt Hiro when he left.

He didn't ask if it was okay or if Hiro wanted to go.

Once he was assured Hiro was doing fine that day, Baymax would lead the team off.

On the fourth day of Hiro staring out the window of his room, someone knocked on his door. "Come in," he said. There were some light footsteps and Hiro turned in surprise to see a grinning little boy running up to him. He grinned back, and, feeling like a total outsider, looked up for permission to pick Little Huan up. Mei smiled, then saw his face.

"Oh...yeah," she picked up her son and placed the excited boy in Hiro's lap, "Definitely understand that look." Mei watched him glare in frustration out the window, before he felt Huan tugging curiously at his short hair and smiled down at him. "Want to talk...?"

"They're gone again," Hiro said limply after a moment.

"Guess you got an appointment with a real psychologist tomorrow, huh?"

He sighed at her half-joking attempt; Dian(e) Yu was a frequent humor booster.

She sighed as well. "I am seriously opened to talking, Hiro."

Mei leaned forward a little and he repositioned himself a bit.

"I just don't understand why..." Hiro paused, looking up. "It's more than I could ever have hoped that they'd forgive me," he explained, "But why do they have to treat me so different now?" Tears formed in his eyes. "I'm still the same Hiro I always was. I'm trying so hard to be normal and they act like they don't even know me. Like I'm not..."

"Who you were?"

"They always knew who I was," Hiro glared away at the floor. He had done an overhaul and recycled his old room into part lab, part old room and part of what it had been. "It doesn't matter that I came back, it's just what I thought. I'm just a stranger to them."

"Hiro," The older girl touched his arm and he met her eyes, "I was just a stranger, too, remember?" she said gently, but for once he wasn't being talked down to. In fact, only GoGo talked to Hiro like he had messed up; not like he _was_ messed up. So he nodded.

"I just wish they wouldn't treat me like this... especially Maxie."

"He still loves you, Hiro."

"I know," he replied.

"Maybe... maybe they're scared, too. Like we all get."

"I know they're scared of me," Hiro said ironically, hoisting Huan up by his hands. He smiled at the boy and the boy smiled back. "But you're not scared of me, huh Huany?"

Mei conceded. "Maybe they're scared because they don't know what to say, Hiro."

He looked at her, then nodded again. "I have to start over... and give it more time."

Mei nodded back and Huan pressed his face to the window. Hiro chuckled and blew on the glass, drawing a face in the condensation. She joined them and the three did this together for a few minutes before the boy fell asleep in his cousin's arms. Hiro calmed inside, holding the child and understanding it would take time to rebuild what he'd lost.

She touched her son's head, Hiro smiled.

Or... what he thought he'd lost.

 **II**.

Baymax watched the cloud patterns drift across the sky. He tried to see a pareidolia image in them, as Hasaki had taught him once when Baymax had taken him up here. It was one of only a few times. If robots could think abstractly, they would be humans.

"Hey, Max."

The robot turned to the shy human standing on the turbine behind him.

"Hiro," He said, as if his presence there had been half-expected.

His patient's orange-gold eyes were hesitant, shimmery like just before a soft sunset.

Baymax was a little puzzled that he'd had this thought.

Hiro smiled sheepishly. "Can I watch the clouds with you?"

The robot tilted his head. "Of course you can, Hiro. Though I am normally here alone."

Even as guilt hit his heart, Hiro smiled again and walked slowly over to sit beside him.

A few moments passed and Hiro looked up at him.

"I've come to challenge you for the leadership of Big Hero 6," he grinned, fist up.

Baymax blinked. "You have?"

Hiro sighed. "No." he looked out on the horizon. "I wanted to ask you if I'm still..."

The robot cocked his head.

"On the team?"

Hiro didn't meet his eyes.

Baymax nodded slowly. "You always are, Hiro. Big Hero 6 is not my team to lead." He saw Hiro brighten. "However, there is still the matter of your overall health and ability to assimilate back into your life. Which is often the case for those affected by... PTSD."

Hiro kept looking outwards. Baymax joined him.

After almost a minute, the teen found something to say.

"Hasaki told me he might only have 10 to 25."

"Hiro?"

The teen got up and faced him. "Baymax!" He broke the barrier.

"H-,"

"Why are you doing this?!" Hiro demanded, desperate for the robot's friendship.

"Hiro, I am not-,"

"Yes you ARE! You're treating me like I'm... I'm different. And... and not worth your time. Like you did six months ago. I tried, Baymax, really, I've tried being here and being a good nephew, and friend, and hero. And I failed! I just totally FAILED!" When Baymax finally stood and held his arms out, Hiro rushed into them like a bullet. Tears streamed down his face as he clutched the robot's hard waist. "Take me back, buddy."

"Hiro," Baymax said softly, placing his hands on the teen's back.

His eyes melted like gold when he looked up again. "Baymax, take me back." he pled.

"Hiro, I -,"

For once, Baymax had no words.

Hiro dropped his arms, defeat heavy in his heart as he realized...

Baymax _had_ taken him back. Before. And again.

It's too late, isn't it? He thought.

Hiro understood now.

"You can't trust me," he said.

Baymax looked at him for a moment, the teen dropped his head with a nod and started away when he was swept up into a firm embrace. His eyes nearly leapt out of his head and his breath nearly strangulated him ... he blinked hard and then brushed the tears away ineffectively with his hand, and hugged Baymax back. The robot didn't ask more.

But Hiro pulled back and looked him in the eyes.

"I can't be selfless," he admitted. "I can't be... leader anymore. I get it now."

"Hiro," Baymax put him on his feet, removed his helmet and his own glove, then gently wiped the tear streaks from his face. Hiro smiled at this. "It is programmed into me to protect you. And, it is my decision, to love you." The boy pressed his hand to his face.

"I love you too, buddy."

Curiosity was in Baymax's eyes but he didn't force the issue. He didn't hold it over his best friend and patient's head to tell him what had happened or his reasons for all that had occurred. Hiro and Baymax ended up sitting back down together, closer this time.

Running his fingers down his face, Hiro turned thoughtful.

"I didn't go with Hua because I wanted to rebel or because of my parents."

Baymax turned at this. "GoGo has said it may have been your feeling unappreciated."

Hiro laughed a little. "I thought so, too." he shook his head. "Man, what a selfish turd I am." He was aware of the depth of this understatement, of how he didn't deserve to be next to this selfless hero... or how, "Baymax, I didn't think you were alive," Hiro let out his greatest fear. "I... I knew that Hua had to be lying, like I thought the team was... I couldn't do it." Hiro looked up at him right over his head. "I reverted right back to me."

"You are you."

"Baymax," his shook head, bemused.

"I have never fully understood why you feel my existence is imperative to yours, Hiro."

The robot then decided to find out why, so he asked.

"I couldn't be the man Tadashi and Aunt Cass wanted me to be without you."

"My actions would never have determined that, even if my being there benefited you."

"Buddy," Hiro grinned. "It's _because_ of you that I benefitted at all."

Baymax listened to this.

"I disagree," he said honestly. "I believe with or without my interference, your life-,"

"Baymax, I'd be DEAD without you."

"This statement is true, but does not contradict my previous opinion."

"And what about when I die?!" Hiro leapt up and asked him. "What will you do? And if something happens to you when I'm alive, or, or..." Baymax placed his hands on Hiro's shoulders, telling him he still accepted that Hiro felt this way about him, who chuckled in spite of himself. "Guess I do have a problem, huh?" He admitted and plopped down.

"Hiro, there is no guarantees," Baymax said sagely, the voice of a wisdom from many, many different times and people, "But I can guarantee one thing," he craned his head to look at Hiro and coax him to do this too, "And that is I will not ever give up on you."

A peaceful nod, a deep sigh, "Thanks, buddy."

"Now you must learn to fly." Baymax stood up.

Hiro smiled, bemused again. "Baymax, I already know how to fly."

"You must learn to fly with your body and soul, not just your mind. It is important."

His friend laughed out loud. "Maxie, my mind _is_ the most important thing about me!"

Baymax gently rose off the turbine and held his hand out to Hiro, "Trust me," he said in the voice that was his own, "I remember before you went to China, Hiro, a dragon who taught me to fly with more then just my armor. Who taught me to _feel_ as I flew."

Hiro smiled, remembering just the dragon Baymax meant. He took his hand.

They were best friends still, both realized, and always had been.

 **III**.

"Wasabi," GoGo said for the third time as he kept stirring his green tea ponderously.

He didn't seem to hear her, his fingers crammed into his dreadlocks as he thought.

Honey and Fred wisely removed their own arms from the table but GoGo merely pulled a twig from an Ikebana arrangement and placed it in his hair. The side of his lips went up and he brushed it out without looking, taking a deep breath over his tea. GoGo was abated and Honey and Fred were able to breathe. However, the four were right back to where they had been, back to where they always seemed to be: what to do about Hiro.

"Y'think maybe we should just..." Fred started to say it.

"It isn't fair to keep pushing him like this," Honey voiced her agreement.

Wasabi had folded his arms and laboriously exhaled through his nose.

"GoGo," He laid his eyes on her, "You and Baymax really spearheaded things all of this time, especially..." the man exhaled heavily, his eyes averting briefly, "When Tadashi passed on. It was your idea to call Hiro, your idea to find him, you _never_ gave up." He was have trouble saying this, but GoGo still listened patiently. "I think it's up to you..."

"I agree," Honey said, then added, "I mean, you worked on Baymax day and night."

Fred smiled at this memory of his friend's courage, "Yeah, Leiko, if anyone deserves to be the leader, it's you." Honey and Wasabi nodded at this. "When Baymax gets back-,"

"I have returned." The robot announced with a ring of triumph to his agreeable voice.

They all looked up along with Aunt Cass and Dian as Baymax came to the front door, peered up, then bent forward a little (as much as he could) to allow Hiro the chance to duck his head as they both entered the Lucky Cat Café. Everyone was surprised to see Hiro riding on Baymax's shoulders, before turning relieved. This is what they'd missed!

Hiro slipped off of him, gave his best friend a big hug, then turned to the team.

They started to get up before habitually stopping, looking happy but still unsure.

Hiro nodded slowly. "I should've expect this," he shrugged.

"Híro," Honey-Lemon started, but she had missed him so much, "We love you, but..."

"Fine, I'll do it," Fred walked over and hugged his friend. Hiro chuckled and returned it.

"Guys... girls, I'm not gonna ask you to take me back. It's not my place anymore."

"Hiro has already asked me," Baymax inserted.

To this, Hiro grinned restrictively and nudged his belly, "Thanks, buddy."

"Dude, we know you really wanna come back." Fred told him.

Wasabi shrugged lightly when Hiro turned his way. "But it's not up to us..."

He and Honey looked at GoGo.

"Oh..." She shook her head. "Oh now, stop. I haven't agreed to anything."

"GoGo, you would make an excellent leader." Baymax concurred with a head tilt.

"GoGo as leader...?" Hiro smiled in amusement.

"I have to agree," Aunt Cass smiled too, concentrating on her gleaming counter.

Her nephew walked up to GoGo. "Listen, I know what you did back there... that night."

She nodded, but took no credit. "It was nothing more than any of us would've done."

"I know," he looked at all of them. "I don't deserve this, but, can we still be friends?"

Fred nailed him in the arm.

"OW!"

"And if you ever ask us that again, it'll be twice as hard!"

Hiro winced comically, and they all laughed together.

"Hiro," GoGo nodded for the staircase that would take them to the roof.

He understood and followed after her. Wasabi caught his arm and Hiro shook his fists to which the man reached to mess the hair that was no longer on his head, paused a moment, then pretended to whack him when Hiro butted his hand away. They watched as GoGo and Hiro left before turning to Baymax for answers; the robot merely blinked.

"Hiro will be all right." He ascertained.

With that said, the family finally went back to their normal routine.

...

"Anymore of these pep talks and I'll be a basket case," Hiro said as he sat down.

GoGo placed her boot against Tadashi's old pigeon coop and leaned back.

The sun was just starting to arch down in the sky.

"This isn't really a pep talk," she said. "But you don't have to keep lowering yourself down, Hiro." GoGo noted how he wouldn't stand up, to which he sighed. "Come on... you know this is ridiculous. Stand up and talk to me." The teen did as he was told, just as he had been for the last three days. Both feeling unsatisfied, they looked to the sky.

Hiro didn't know what to say.

"What was it like living on your own?" She asked.

He smiled a little. "Awesome, liberating..."

GoGo nodded at this long-ago description of herself.

His shoulders dropped. "Lonely," he looked back and smiled wryly at her. "Miserable."

"That's exactly how we felt when you were gone."

"I'm..." Hiro knew she had his number. "I'm not really good at this."

"I've _never_ been good at this," GoGo met his eyes, equally at odds with this dilemma.

They were the same height now.

"But you tried."

"So did you."

Hiro's head fell against the eaves of the staircase. "Well, back to square one, then."

GoGo had something else in mind.

"Go," she said simply.

He looked at her, puzzled.

"Go out into that world that isn't ours and **do** something. Something that Hiro wants."

"You're... telling me to go?"

"I'm telling you that you know what's best for you. You have a good heart and mind, Hiro. It should be your choice what you do with them." She told him, then looked to see the sun setting on his fourth day here. Hiro smiled at her and told her, "Nice try."

GoGo shrugged.

"I could leave," Hiro said.

She nodded.

"But then I'd be just doing what I did before." He shook his head. "No, I'm staying."

Hiro saw her lift a brow at that.

"I'm not just gonna... put Tadashi's hat on and walk symbolically down the road. For real, GoGo, is that what you think I'm gonna do? I'm gonna stay here and be reliable."

"But is that _what you want?_ " She countered calmly.

"What I want..." Hiro thought it over. "I want my family. I want my Aunt Cass, and my cousins and Baymax... you guys." He smiled. GoGo nodded. "More then anything else, even more then I want my freedom or to be a hero." A noise came from below the two.

"Think fast," GoGo wasn't merely speculative now.

"Are... are they here for _me_?" Hiro was anxious. "Oh man, I wonder what they found."

She grasped his shoulder. "Hiro, no one is taking you from us. Not even you."

He smiled at her, trusting his friend.

"Don't you *ever* doubt that again." GoGo said. "And yeah, we're gonna re-match."

Hiro hugged her and she hugged him back.

"Someday," she promised.

 **IV.**

"I'm tellin' you!" Hiroku Hamada explained to the agents and two lawyers (one being his own) as they stood outside the remodeled café. "I haven't seen my son, his wife or my two grandsons in years. That goes for my daughter-in-law's twin sister or her kin-,"

Aunt Cass poked her head out suspiciously, but it was towards the man's company.

"Hey... Chihiro?" He said in surprise.

"Cassandra," she smiled.

"Well, it's nice seeing you again." Hiroku was absolutely the opposite of Hasaki in that he was every bit as modern as your average San Fransokyian. "Can you please tell the fine gentlemen and women in Fed garb here I have zero involvement with any of you?"

A boy who looked just like his mother and aunt walked out to greet him.

"My word." The fifty-nine-year-old man was aghast.

"I... guess you're my grandpa."

"Your Taku's boy?" Hiroku guessed as well, a lump in his throat.

"I'm Hiro," he said and instantly went to hug him.

"I..." His shoulders dropped. Sixteen years disappeared. "I guess that's all right, then."

"Hello, Hiro." Mayo Matsuki, Hiro and formerly Aunt Cass's own lawyer, beamed and shook the young man's hand. "Well, you're looking better. How is your wonderful f-,"

All ten of which appeared in the entranceway.

Hiro grinned at them and popped his shoulders up in a shrug happily. "Good... now that they're mostly all here." Baymax and Aunt Cass wrapped their arms around him.

A heaviness fell as Mr. Matsuki proceeded with the matter at hand.

"Due to the severity of this nature," he said.

Hiro nodded accountably.

"But considering all you've been through and your-,"

"I take responsibility for my actions." He interrupted.

Fear spiked through their hearts; this wasn't the way this was supposed to go!

At least Hiro wasn't before a judge yet.

"Hiro," Baymax turned to him seriously, "it is wise for you to listen to this man and say particular things so as to avoid consequences that may later prove detrimental to you."

"Baymax, I knew what I was doing. I know you're all just trying to protect me from my actions, but, this isn't how you grow up. By hiding from what you've done." Hiro turned to the people responsible for bringing in people who had done wrong; people like Hiro.

"Actually, that's how I'd say you know your grown up. Especially that last part."

Hiroku was another relative for another story.

"What we were going to suggest..." His lawyer continued, proud but a little befuddled by Hiro's admission. "Was a just-approved, youth reform program that Leiko's cousins have been attempting these last five to six months, a law that was suggested by your uncle and Baymax." Hiro's eyes widened and he turned to the big plush bot on his left.

Baymax looked back at him with as much love he was capable of showing.

"No one wants to see you leave," Ha-Jun came over, having just arrived in their van.

"Yes," Ji-Min agreed, "Intelligence operatives," he grinned. "It beats jail _and_ reckless pro-botting fights." The two even had their own casual light grey suits... and an extra.

Hiro caught this one they tossed.

"What'd ya think?" Wasabi wanted to know.

"At least until you decide what you want to do otherwise." Honey-Lemon was hopeful.

They all were.

"I'll have to think about it," Hiro looked down at the uniform.

Baymax laid his head on Hiro's.

"Guess my mind's made up," The teen grinned, knowing Maxie had called his bluff.

He felt eleven people move in to hug him.

...

It was late, Hiro noted, everyone was asleep. He made sure his tread was as soft as air as he stepped past his aunt's room, both his cousins' room and nephews' room. A real warmth filled his heart, that his family had been rebuilt and that _some_ good had come from his reckless actions. Hiro sighed softly and crept down to the first floor. He smiled at the ambiance of family pictures, culture and modern innovation that was Cass's new café. Pride for his team, friends, his entire family was in his eyes even as he tip-toed in his old habit down to the basement and to his and Tadashi's first lab. Hiro looked at it.

Not much had changed, now that the sheets were gone.

He clicked on a light that illuminated an entire work table. Proceeding over, Hiro took something from his pocket and looked down at it. A purple chip read: "Current" on it.

Followed by a heart font symbol.

The teen lifted a paint-peeled, wood panel and pressed down on a button. Without so much as a swoosh, a glass container rose and a black, carbon nanotubed chip rose up inside of it. Hiro took a deep breath, lowered his brows and placed his thumb drive in the tiny access code. The glass door swung open and he placed both in with the chip.

Now the black fighting chip, the thumb drive with all his secrets and a purple heart lay inside of the glass container. He was about to return it down when a large belly that had been behind him touched his back so it's occupant could get a better look. _My big old Maxie,_ Hiro gave his buddy a pat and shut the panel, using a sheet to cover it up.

"Let's just keep this between you and me, Max."

"But why, Hiro?" Baymax asked innocently.

"Sometimes," his friend sighed, then hugged him to his side. "It's better not to know."

The robot considered this. "I'll always trust you."

Hiro nodded. "I know."

Baymax hugged him to his side as well and the two best friends went up to bed.

Another day of saving the world awaited them.

The End.

 **A/N** : Hehe. Hope you liked the "short" final chapter. ^^ Anyways, I know this wasn't or has ever been a big fic, but I loved writing it just the same. Thank you for reading!

~ Lavenderpaw ~


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